WATCH: A former special forces officer plans on doing the London Marathon dressed as a rhino
ByReporter
A former special forces officer is looking to beat the time set for running the London Marathon – dressed in a 10kg RHINO suit.
Vinny O’Neill has raised almost £2,000 and is promising donors their money back if he fails to break the record – which currently stands at 4h 17m.
He said: “I wanted a bigger challenge. I’ve competed in a number of marathons all round the world – however I wanted to push myself further.
“It’s hot, heavy and you can’t see. It’s incredibly noisy, but you can get used to that pretty quick.
“The costumes, which weigh more than 20lbs, have a rich history, having been built by Niki Lyons – who also built the Teletubbies costumes – for an opera at Chichester Festival Theatre in 1989/99.
“Save the Rhino founders Dave Stirling and Johnny Roberts asked if they could use the costumes once the show was over and have been using them in fundraising events ever since.”
WATCH: A former special forces officer plans on doing the London Marathon dressed as a rhino