TWO brothers who battled Storm Callum to complete a gruelling four-day challenge through Wales have raised almost £4,000 for Torfaen and Blaenau Gwent Mind.

Anthony Priest, from Abersychan, and his brother Nathan, from Blackwood, completed the challenge, which included the North to South Wales Cycle, the Welsh Three Peaks challenge, a 25km weighted march on Pen y Fan and through the Brecon Beacons, and two Ironman triathlon distances, despite the conditions.

Anthony Priest said: “The conditions were pretty severe. I think they probably made it 30 to 40 per cent harder.

“At one stage the wind topped out at 91mph, I even got blown off my bike in to the banking at one stage.

“We didn’t want to give up, and the conditions we faced made it so much more meaningful in the end.

“The first day was brutal.

“The swim in Hollyhead went fine, but as soon as we got on to the mainland on our bikes, you could see the storm coming in, but it galvanised us to carry on.

“We both broke down in tears as we crossed the line in Cardiff Bay.”

The brothers’ fundraising page has made £3,730 in donations, but with the addition of cash and gift aid donations they expect to have raised almost £5,000.

Mr Priest said: “It seemed to strike a chord with people. It was bigger than anything that we anticipated.

“The support we received, with people following us online or supporting us doing the challenge was incredible.

“The challenge really could not have happened without support team member Jason Taylor. He was there with us every step of the way, so it was only right that we crossed the line in Cardiff Bay arm-in-arm with him.

“It has definitely helped to raise awareness of men’s mental health issues and got a lot of people talking about it, and has raised more money than we had targeted for Torfaen and Blaenau Gwent Mind.”

Mr Priest hinted that he may be looking to carry on the challenge in the future.

He said: “Whether this is something that continues we will have to see. It would be a shame for us to just leave it as this.”

For more information, or to donate, you can visit: mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/1in4challengewales2018