A NEWPORT man has completed his goal of cycling to London before taking part in the city’s marathon.

Keen cyclist and runner Mark Birchall, 46, decided to combine both of his hobbies into the one mammoth challenge.

He chose to cycle the 180 miles from Newport to London before completing the 26.2 mile race on Sunday.

He said: “The cycling went according to plan and I didn’t feel too tired following it. But the run was hard.”

He described how at around 15 miles his calf muscles became very tight and painful, which slowed him down.

But he got over the finish line in five hours and 21 minutes.

Mr Birchall, who works as a surveyor, set off on his bike on Thursday from outside The Hilton, Coldra – with the journey taking three days.

Joining him along his cycle route was childhood friend from Duffryn High School, John Harper, 45, and his son, Rhys Harper, 12, who live in the Midlands.

The group chose to raise funds for the British Heart Foundation and have collected £1,665 for their efforts.

Mr Birchall explained that they chose the charity in memory of a friend who died 29 years ago. The friend’s heart was donated and another life was saved.