Dad to take on 21 parkrun courses in son's memory

Mike Rich said despite some nerves he was "looking forward" to the challenge

A dad whose son died during a football match is running 21 different parkrun courses in as many hours to celebrate what would have been his 21st birthday.

Dylan Rich was 17 when he suffered a cardiac arrest in an FA Youth Cup game in Nottinghamshire in September 2021.

His dad, Mike Rich, from West Bridgford, has set his sights on completing the 65-mile (105km) mammoth running challenge across the region on Saturday.

The 51-year-old is due to start the challenge at 02:45 BST and aims to finish before midnight on Sunday.

Mr Rich said he was an avid runner and had visited each parkrun course ahead of the challenge

The challenge will raise funds for The Dylan Rich Legacy charity, which supports causes that reflect the teenager's interests and passions.

Mr Rich, who works in consultancy in local government, said: "This year lots of friends and family have been taking on 21-related challenges to mark what would have been Dylan's birthday - so I decided to go for 21 parkruns in 21 hours.

"I'll have people joining me along the way; some friends will be with me for the early runs, and others are planning to jump in for the later ones.

"The challenge will mostly be about making it to the end rather than speed. I'll need to keep a steady pace to get through them all and aim to do each course in about half an hour."

His route will start in Leicestershire and will cover courses in Braunstone, Abbey Park, and Beacon Hill, before reaching Rushcliffe parkrun in Nottinghamshire for the official event at 09:00 BST.

Dylan Rich had been a player for West Bridgford Colts since he was six

From there, he will continue to head through Nottinghamshire, finishing late at night at Clumber Park.

Mr Rich added: "Dylan probably would have thought I was a bit crazy, but I'd like to think he would have come and run some of the parkuns with me, and he'd have been supportive and proud, I'm sure.

"I would imagine he'd probably have been trying to race his sister on some of the courses just to prove a point!"

Dylan was playing in a football match between West Bridgford Colts and Boston United when he fell ill.

After his death, the England football team paid tribute to him before their World Cup qualifier against Poland, when the players held up a shirt with "For Dylan" printed on it.