A Peel man is recovering after running nearly 50 miles along the Normandy coast to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day on June 6.

Martin Wade followed a route across the invasion beaches, which should have been 44 miles, but, due to security around visits by Presidents Macron and Trump to the beaches, an extra four and a half miles were added to the route.

charity

He was running to raise money for the military mental health charity Combat Stress and in remembrance of his grandfather, Sergeant Bert Wade, who landed on Gold Beach with the Royal Engineers.

Martin, 48, finished the race in 11 hours and said it was an unforgettable experience.

’It was a huge privilege to be in Normandy on the 75th anniversary of the landings and to be a small part of the commemorations,’ he said.

’We started the run at Point du Hoc on Omaha Beach where the Americans suffered terrible casualties.

’It was a beautiful, still morning and as dawn broke we held a minute’s silence to reflect on the sacrifices made on that day.’

The run finished at Pegasus Bridge, which saw the first fighting on D-Day when this vital bridge was captured just after midnight on June 6, 1944.

’It was very emotional to finish at Pegasus Bridge,’ Martin said.

’There were thousands of people there for the anniversary and after running nearly 50 miles we all felt proud at what we’d achieved.’

Martin is a media operations officer with Number 614 (County of Glamorgan) Squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force.

He has competed in many half-marathons, marathons and ultra-marathons and was raising money for the military mental health charity Combat Stress.

He has raised nearly £600 for them so far.

’I’m so grateful to everyone who has donated so far and there’s still time to help the great work that they do if anyone else would like to donate,’ he said.

To make a donation to Combat Stress go to: bit.ly/DDay44mile