Runner who carried Olympic torch through Doncaster revives it for gruelling charity challenge

Jonathan Buckley was one of thousands of torch bearers who carried the flame through the country ahead of the London 2012 games.

And Jonathan, who carried the torch through Armthorpe, is digging it out of storage and taking it with him as he runs four half marathons in four weeks.

He aims to raise £40,000 for the Snowdrop Project which supports victims of human trafficking in South Yorkshire.

He will start off with the Sheffield Half Marathon on April 7.

He will then be heading to Rugeley on April 14, where he will be running a half marathon in the local forest with his brother.

On April 21, he will be back in South Yorkshire, running the Roche Abbey half marathon, finishing off on April 28 by running the East Yorkshire half marathon in Hull, again carrying the Olympic Torch from 2012.

He will then turn 40 a couple of days later on April 30.

He said: “I've had this mad idea of running four marathons in four weeks to celebrate my 40th birthday to raise £40k for Snowdrop for a while.

"With our youngest joining our family at the beginning of 2023, I realised I wouldn't have the time to undertake the training needed for four marathons; but have decided to keep up with the spirit of the training, and will be running four half-marathons.”

“To add to the challenge, I'll be carrying the Olympic Torch from 2012 round the four routes as well.

“It is currently behind our TV.

"I ran with it through Armthorpe back in July 2012, and I carried it while running the Sheffield 10K for Snowdrop in October. I had a few comments from the crowd and fellow runners, so thought I'd do it again!

“I've managed to get six or seven friends signed up to run alongside me to help reach that £40,000 target. There's still plenty of space for others to join me too! Please do get in touch with Snowdrop if you'd like to run a half-marathon – or four - with me.

“I'd also like to raise awareness of modern slavery and the work Snowdrop does.

"Before having kids, my wife and I were volunteer drivers with the Salvation Army's Modern Slavery Team, which involved picking up victims of trafficking and taking them to safe houses across the country.

"We met first-hand the people that Snowdrop work with; we've had them in our car. We've chatted with them. That's part of our journey to doing what we can. And maybe one day, when our kids are a bit older, we'll get back volunteering with the Salvation Army again.

The fundraising page can be found at www.justgiving.com/page/jbandfriends.

If you'd like to find out more about joining Jonathan in his fundraising, or to chat about organising your own fundraiser, drop an email to [email protected].

More details about Snowdrop are available HERE