Worthing man runs Brighton Half Marathon in full suit of armour

Rob Holmes ran the 30th Brighton Half Marathon wearing a 25kg suit of armour to raise money for West Sussex Mind.

Despite challenging weather conditions and high winds, he completed the 13.1 mile route in 3 hours 35 minutes and 2 seconds raising almost £200 for the local branch of the charity.

However, Rob says he wants to raise more via his fundraising page after completing the world record attempt.

“Running the marathon in armour seemed a good idea at first and now I’m wondering why I did it,” Rob said.

Rob got the idea after having a conversation with a colleague who mentioned that her son takes part in battle reenactments.

“The cogs started turning and I wanted to raise money for West Sussex Mind,” he said.

But Rob did not have a suit of armour lying around and said he took to the internet to find some.

“It’s amazing what you can find on eBay!” Rob said.

“The half marathon was exhausting; the armour weighs over 25kg, it’s bulky, hot and very restrictive. The very strong winds and rain really didn’t help.

“The feet of the armour kept digging in to my feet, at one stage I thought I’d broken my toe. So I made the decision to remove the armour legs.

“I’m a bit cut, bruised and battered, but got up for work on Monday.”

Rob said he celebrated the achievement with ‘huge hugs’ from Mary Crab and Linda James who ran the half marathon alongside him.

The brave knight also celebrated with a meal from Burger King and a ‘de-rusting shower’ for the armour which took a battering from the sea air.

Talking about his decision to run the Brighton half, Rob said: “I have always loved Brighton, the people are always so supportive. I live in Worthing so it’s local.

“This year was the Brighton Half’s 30th anniversary so it was a bit special.”

Supporters can still donate to Rob’s online fundraising page via the Virgin Money Giving website here.