Teacher to distance 2313 miles between Leeds and Syria
A man from Leeds is planning to run a marathon every week all year round as well as cycling the total length of 2313 miles in aid of charity.
Naheem Yacub, 27, will be raising money for the Leeds Children’s Hospital and the Red Cross Syria Crisis appeal by taking part in marathons and cycles that span the approximate distance between Leeds and Syria.
A teacher and also a barber, Mr Yacub completed the Leeds Half Marathon in 2011 and competed in the Yorkshire Marathon in 2012. But after being inspired by a local marathon runner who happened to run 2013 miles, Mr Yacub decided to go a step further and run 2014 miles.
After discussing the challenge with his friends, one of his friends used Google to find the distance between Leeds and Syria, which came up as 2313 miles.
Not far off 2014, Mr Yacub then set himself the challenge to conquer the distance in aid of charity.
Mr Yacub officially started his challenge on 5 January by running a half marathon in Lancashire finishing at the time of 2 hours 8 minutes.
He told the Yorkshire Standard: “In all honesty, I didn’t realise it would be this difficult. Running for a week or a month isn’t too bad once you’re into it but running this kind of distance, week in week out for a whole year is definitely challenging.”
Already planning ahead, he will be cycling from Lands End to John O’Groats in June within 12 days, averaging around 90 miles a day.
Commenting, he said: “The cycle won’t be easy as it’s continuously cycling for six to seven hours a day for around two weeks but it’s all for a good cause. The pain I’ll go through is nothing compared to some people suffering in the world.”
With the support of family, friends and the local community, Mr Yacub will be setting himself further challenges to run and cycle the distance of 2313 miles throughout the year.
Ready for the challenges ahead, he said: “I feel we as individuals or even as a group we can’t change the world overnight. What we can do is our best while we are around and change the lives of some for the better, using the resources available to us.
“One of the reasons I took on the challenge is that many of us think because we’re not sporting professionals, we aren’t capable of completing such challenges. Truth is, we can conquer anything if we set our mind to it.”
Mr Yacub will be updating his donation page after each run with his times and progress.
If you’d like to find out how you can help Mr Yacub, please visit www.virginmoneygiving.com/naheemyacub.
