A keen sports fan from Welwyn is 'swapping the TV for trainers' as he prepares to tackle the London Marathon.

Chris Knapp, 38, will run the marathon on Sunday, April 21 to raise money for Herts MS Therapy Centre, which is based in Letchworth.

He said: "I love watching most sports, including football, Formula 1, cricket, rugby and American football.

"I've completed three half-marathons in the past but I'll be taking on the full
distance for the first time."

The three half-marathons Chris completed were the Ealing Half, the Greenwich Half Marathon and the London Landmarks.

Chris said: "I absolutely loved the Ealing run. I wasn't too familiar with that part of
London so I took in some new sights and it was a lovely sunny day too.

"The Greenwich run, known as the Big Half, was horrible. It rained a great deal and I also
pulled my hamstring and ended up limping over the line. But the atmosphere was
incredible.

"The London Landmarks was in aid of Cancer Research and was superb. I
highly recommend it."

Chris is already familiar with much of the 26.2-mile London Marathon route, as he works as a civil servant in Whitehall, was born in Greenwich and raised in Plumstead.

He now lives in Welwyn with his wife Farbin and their children - six-year-old Jamal and one-year-old Isaac.

As part of his training, Chris has been running routes in Ayot Green and Codicote, and plans to continue running once the marathon is over.

He said: "I will also be travelling into London a few times this summer to do some longer
runs around some of the lovely parks we have in the capital."

You can sponsor Chris at https://2024tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/hertfordshirerunner.

Anyone who is interested in running the marathon for Herts MS Therapy Centre can contact Paul Bishop on 07973 237162.

Herts MS Therapy Centre has been providing hyperbaric oxygen therapy for the past 35 years. 

The therapy can help people with a wide range of conditions including MS, cancer, Parkinson's disease, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, ME, sleep apnoea, leg ulcers and soft tissue sports injuries.