Wheelchair adventurer closing in on marathon challenge

A adventurer in a wheelchair is close to completing seven marathons on seven continents in a week.

Darren Edwards from Shropshire started in Antarctica on 31 January and is due to finish in Florida on Tuesday.

The former Army reservist is taking part in the World Marathon Challenge which also visits South Africa, Australia, Dubai, Brazil and Spain.

He said he did not want to let his disability prevent him from "dreaming big and taking on tough challenges".

Mr Edwards, from West Felton, suffered a life-changing spinal cord injury while mountain climbing in 2016.

He had been preparing to start a job as a history teacher when he was injured in North Wales, leaving him paralysed from his chest down.

But he said since then he had "been on a journey of rediscovery".

Mr Edwards is raising money for the Armed Forces Para-Snowsport Team, a charity that supports wounded, injured and sick military personnel.

He said he had crossed over 18 time zones and spanned the globe in just 168 hours.

The first marathon, in Antarctica, was "the most challenging five hours, 50 minutes of my life," he said.

He battled high winds, freezing temperatures and snow drifts, but said it was also the most rewarding time of his life too as got to experience "the raw beauty and majesty of the world's most southerly continent".

In the "hot and windy" sunshine in South Africa, he managed to cross the finish line first, with a time of two hours and 48 minutes.

He said it was probably the first time he had won anything in his life.

His race in Perth, Australia, was completed in the "blazing afternoon heat" in two hours and 36 minutes and he said he got to see a "breath-taking sunset with shades of purple and deep orange".

After completing his fourth marathon in Dubai in another personal best time, he said: "I am beginning to realise that I am capable of more than I often give myself credit for."

He described Madrid as a "gruelling marathon today on the rutted streets" and said it was particularly challenging because he had to repeat the same loop 33 times.

The final two marathons will be in Fortaleza, Brazil and Miami, Florida.

Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [email protected]