Peterborough boxer scores knockout win against marathon challenge

Marcello Renda took on the ‘virtual London Marathon’ challenge with cousin Luke Sarro on Sunday, with the pair winding their way through the streets of Peterborough to Whittlesey and back.

It was the first time either of them had taken part in a marathon, and they completed the course in under five hours, while raising money for charity Boxing Futures.

Marcello said; “It has taken a good couple of days or so to recover. We were fine until about 18 miles in, when my leg started to really feel it.

“I’ve always wanted to do a marathon, so when my cousin suggested it, we went for it, and said lets give it a go.”

The pair have raised more than £700 for their charity with the efforts - and Marcello’s boxing career helped the pair keep going.

He said: “There are times in a fight where you have to push yourself and use your mental strength to keep you going. When my legs got heavy, I thought that was something similar to being in a fight in a ring, and that mental strength kept pushing me forwards.

“I’ve done runs throughout my boxing career, but nothing of this length before, and Luke has only been running a couple of years.

“I was just thinking that I could do it throughout. It didn’t matter how fast, I just wanted to get to the end. If you believe you can do something, you can.”