Iron Will: Cumbrian dad organises triathlon challenge

Sam Taylor said he was inspired by his 14-year-old son Will

An Ironman-inspired charity fundraising challenge has been organised by a dad as a way to "fight back" against his son's muscle-wasting condition.

Sam Taylor, from Crooklands, Cumbria, has already raised £17,000 with more than 40 people due to take part.

The 44-year-old fundraiser was inspired by his son, Will, who was diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy aged four.

Over the years, Sam has raised more than £200,000 for charity.

More than 18 months of planning has gone into creating the Iron Will challenge, which starts on 31 August and ends 2 September.

The fundraiser will span the distance of a typical Ironman challenge, where participants will swim, bike and run a loop between Ambleside and Hawkshead.

Iron Will is made up of a 2.4-mile open water swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile run.

The challenge has already raised more than £17,000 for charity

Will, 14, was diagnosed with the muscle-wasting condition in 2014 and Sam said the fundraiser was "our way of fighting back".

"I spend a lot of time thinking about what I can do, how I can do it, and how to get more people involved with our fundraising mission," the father said.

"The bonus of creating these events has been meeting incredible people and giving Will amazing experiences with them.

"Will is the life and soul of the event and he gets a huge buzz from riding around in the support vehicle and being at the centre of the action."

Muscular Dystrophy UK said more than 110,000 people in the UK live with the condition, which causes muscles to weaken over time.

There is currently no cure, but the charity said research was "showing great promise".

The charity described the Taylor family's fundraiser as "brilliant" and said their efforts would "go a long way to help further research".