An athlete who vowed to run 21km every day for 21 days will tomorrow reach the end of his "journey" and has already raised over €11,000 for good causes.
Waterford man Frank Quinlan began his mission of a half-marathon each day for three weeks on 14 April and has been running the distance within two kilometres of his home on each successive day since then.
The experienced marathon runner is a member of Waterford AC and Waterford Triathlon Club.
At the beginning, Mr Quinlan said he had decided "to try and put my running to good use and raise as much as I can over the next 21 days".
The causes benefiting from his endurance and the support of many people are Pieta House Waterford, whose Darkness Into Light annual fundraiser had to be postponed until later in the year; Focus Ireland; and frontline health workers at University Hospital Waterford.
"Anyone who knows Frank," Waterford Athletic Club stated during the week, "is well aware of his mental toughness and ability to hurt and train hard".
All of his half-marathons since 14 April have been run in under 100 minutes and he will start his last run of this venture at about 12 noon on bank holiday Monday from his home at Hillview in Waterford city.
Mr Quinlan said he is "feeling great" and that as well as raising money for the causes involved, the reason he decided to undertake this challenge was "to make people aware that exercise is the key to a healthy and happy life, and the more you do the better you will feel".
The runner recently started a job as a work rider with trainer Joseph O'Brien at Piltown in south Kilkenny and has received much support in his 21km in 21 days project from his employer, as well as many people around Waterford and beyond.
