IT was a 24-hour challenge with no sleep. However, Hampshire fundraiser 51-year-old Marcus Dunbar completed the cycling and walking marathon along Hadrian’s Wall with time to spare and raised a pile of cash for Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Marcus, who is head of sales at Legal and General, trained for the fundraiser on rural lanes in the Test Valley. He was joined on the challenge by 17 of his colleagues.

They conquered the gruelling 106 miles between Carlisle and Newcastle in just under 24 hours – after spending 88 miles in the saddle and 18 miles of the most rugged terrain on foot.

Marcus, who lives in Broughton with his wife and three children, chose Marie Curie Cancer Care as his charity because his late mother Pamela was cared for by the charity’s nurses.

“Everybody’s generosity has been fantastic and it’s great,” said Marcus revealing that he’s raised about £1,500.

He concluded: “It was really tough to complete but I managed to finish within time with our band of Legal and General employees. When the going got tough, for me especially during the hike with my old dodgy knees, the donations and the reason for doing it in tribute to my late mother kept me going.”