A 15-year-old will pay tribute to his former judo coach, who died after contracting Covid-19, with a 24-hour cycling challenge.

Nathan Kennaugh of Douglas will be cycling around the NSC outer track, in Douglas, in memory of former head judo coach and police sergeant Richard Lloyd.

His tribute includes raising funds towards the Isle of Man Judo Squad and the Police Benevolent Fund.

Mr Lloyd was one of the 24 people in the island to have lost their battle with coronavirus.

The 57-year-old was the second person to lose their life to the virus at Noble’s Hospital on April 11.

He had served as a police officer for 30 years, both in Merseyside and the Isle of Man.

After retiring in 2012, he kept a strong association with the police force and helped lead the next generation of potential police officers in the Police Youth Scheme.

The police held a minute’s silence and flew a flag at half mast in honour of Mr Lloyd while abiding by social distancing rules during lockdown. A number of island judo clubs also paid their respects.

Nathan first met Mr Lloyd when he joined the southern Isle of Man Judo Club six years ago.

’He always put me into competitions. He was understanding and always listened to what you had to say and would help you when you were stuck or needed assistance,’ the Ballakermeen High School student said.

Nathan said he and his fellow club members miss him dearly.

’It was hard because we were in lockdown when he died so no one could see each other and it was strange going back to squad training and not having him there,’ Nathan added.

’He definitely had a big impact on everyone.’

Nathan will begin his cycling challenge at 11am on Saturday, July 25.

He is welcoming people to come down and support his efforts on the sideline or by cycling alongside him.

So far he has raised nearly £900 with his target amount being £1,000, which will be split equally between the two initiatives.

The money raised towards the judo squad will be used to help training, developing and competing within a sport in which Richard was so influential on the Isle of Man.

Nathan has undergone a lot of training for the event next weekend.

He admitted that cycling is something that is slightly out of his comfort zone, which is why he decided to take it on to push himself and to also ’make Richard proud’.

Head coach of the Isle of Man Judo Squad, Chris Horton, said: ’Nathan is a committed member of our team, who is developing not just as a judoka, but as a fine young man.

’Richard was a large influence on his life, and Nathan regularly helped out in coaching judo sessions for our younger members, many of whom look up to him as a "big brother".

’Judo is a sport about discipline and respect and I know how hard he has trained for this event.

’Myself, and the rest of the squad, will be supporting him during the event and we know he will want to do his best for Richard.’

You can find Nathan’s fundraising page by searching: https://uk.gofundme.com/f/in-memory-of-richard-lloyd