A team of firefighters in Aberdeen have tested their mettle in an energy-sapping triathlon to raise money for charity.
The group of 15 personnel, who are based at stations throughout the city, started off with a one-mile swim at the Sports Village before cycling 26 miles out to Drumoak and then finishing off with a six-mile run.
All the participants traversed the gruelling circuits in four hours and, in the process, amassed a total of £1,800.
The money raised from the event will now go to The Sandpiper Trust, Mental Health Aberdeen, Bosum Buds for Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Support Trust.
The inspiration to take part came from Greg Wilson, who works at the Central Fire Station and is as committed to helping out other people in his spare time as he is during work hours.
The 26-year-old has arranged previous fundraising efforts among his colleagues, including the Three Peaks challenge, but revealed that the Olympics in Rio had given the group the motivation needed to go further than ever.
He said: “After the success of our Three Peaks challenge, where we raised £8,500 for Cardiac Risk in the Young and Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome UK and the Coronary Care Unit at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, we wanted to do something else to help others.
“We really wanted to push ourselves and a triathlon seemed like the ultimate test of endurance, so we headed down that route.
“With the Olympics being held this year and the admiration we all have for Team GB’s Brownlee brothers [gold and silver medallists Alistair and Jonny], a triathlon seemed like a good choice.”
He added: “We were absolutely shattered by the end, but it was a thoroughly enjoyable day for all of us.”
Mr Wilson’s endurance testing efforts are all the more remarkable given the fact he himself suffered a cardiac arrest at the age of just 22.
He was later diagnosed as having a rare heart condition known as Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome which only affects between one and three people in every thousand in the UK
It is caused by an additional electrical connection in the heart, known as an accessory pathway which can cause rapid electrical conduction, creating a short circuit which occasionally leads to a cardiac arrest.
Fortunately for Mr Wilson, his brothers were on hand to save him from what might otherwise have been a fatal arrhythmia.
And, ever since, he has flung himself into making sure he both lives life to the full and makes a difference to those in his community.
The firefighters’ ongoing fundraising efforts can be assisted if you visit://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/WW500FST
