Great-grandfather aims to repeat walking challenge

A great-grandfather from Coventry has started a charity challenge to walk 10 miles every day for a year - for the second time.

Tony Cunningham, 75, is raising money for the Warwick children's charity Molly Ollys.

He first took on the challenge in 2022, when he walked more than 5,000 miles - about 10 million steps - over 365 days.

"Walking 10 miles a day every day isn’t easy, but I knew that when I set out to do it and the same applies this time around," he said.

Mr Cunningham began his 365 days of walking on 30 November.

He will be completing laps of Coventry's Memorial Park each day - but on Thursday he will swap the park for the pitch, walking 10 miles around the CBS Arena, Coventry City FC's home ground.

He will be joined by ex-City player David Busst, who said: "When we heard about the charity and Tony’s fantastic fundraising ambitions to support it... it was an inspiration to us all the club and Sky Blues in the Community."

Molly Ollys was founded by Rachel and Tim Ollerenshaw in 2011 following the death of their eight-year-old daughter Molly from a rare kidney cancer.

Mr Cunningham said it was a cause close to his own heart.

"My late wife and I lost twins in my first marriage when I was just 21," he said.

"One was stillborn and one died in my arms on the way to the hospital. Even though it was 50 years ago that torments me to this day. There’s not a day goes by when I don’t think about that."

Mr Cunningham, who has undergone a quadruple heart bypass, said he knew the scale of the challenge ahead of him, having done it once already.

"I’m three years older," he said.

"I'm sure there'll be days where I'll ask myself 'what have I let myself in for?' But once you've signed up for it you don’t want to let anyone down."

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