Man with one lung aims for marathon personal best

Richard Few says running with one lung is like wearing a permanent face mask

A man who had his lung removed 17 years ago is preparing to run in his second London marathon.

Richard Few, 41, from Clitheroe, Lancashire, is hoping to beat his five hour 45 minute time from last year.

"I would like to do sub five hours in honour of the one in five people who have a heart and lung condition in the UK," he said.

The father-of-one said one of the reasons he got into running was so his 12-year-old son "won't be lazy in years to come".

Mr Few's life was devastated in 2008 when doctors diagnosed him with a collapsed lung.

He thought he had a chest infection after he had been struggling with his breathing, but was shocked by the diagnosis.

Doctors could not tell why it happened and attempts to reinflate the lung were unsuccessful, leaving medics deciding to, in Mr Few's words, "whip it out" .

"I got married a few weeks later and it took a while to get my head around life with one lung.

"But it has given me a reason to prove to myself that you can live a normal life - even if it is a bit harder," he said.

The keen sportsman said training for a marathon was a challenge in itself.

"Running with one lung feels a bit like having to permanently wear the facemasks we had for Covid," said Mr Few.

He added: "It makes things a bit harder, makes you a bit more breathless, you have to have a work-around - my heart goes through the roof most of the time but you just have to get fitter to offset it."

Mr Few is running for the charity Asthma Lung UK.

"Five hundred of the 50,000 runners are running for this charity and many will have some kind of lung condition, but you can still live a full life," he said.