When Leamington's David Blick crossed the finish line of one of the toughest triathlons in the world, on Sunday, there were thousands of people cheering him on – but he had only one person on his mind - his late mum.

The 53-year-old completed the IRONMAN Wales in Tenby in just over 16 hours and powering him on through every 140 miles of the gruelling challenge was the memory of Maggie, who died after a battle with breast cancer just a few months earlier.

David, who has now completed six Ironman Challenges, was one of more than 3,000 athletes, professionals and amateurs, who joined in one of Wales' biggest sporting events which included the 112-mile (180.2 km) bike course.

He is now hoping to further build on the £2,000 already raised for Breast Cancer Research.

David, aged 53, completed the IRONMAN Wales in Tenby in just over sixteen hours and powering him on through every 140 miles of the gruelling challenge was the memory of Maggie, who died after a battle with breast cancer just a few months earlier (image supplied)

He said: "The swim started at 7:30am and, despite the rain, the atmosphere was incredible. The crowds and support around Tenby were absolutely epic and gave everyone a huge lift from the moment we entered the water. "Then came the bike. Wet, windy and relentlessly hilly. The descents were particularly sketchy with greasy roads and difficult conditions. Speed wasn't important today, staying upright was. Fortunately, I managed to do that and just kept grinding it out mile after mile all 7.5 hours of it.

"The run was where it really became a battle. The rain eased to mostly drizzle, but my foot started hurting badly. In the end, I walked much of the run and all of the last seven miles. At that point it was simply about determination and getting to the finish line. 6.5 hours of torture." He added: "Throughout those final miles, I kept thinking that a few hours of pain was nothing compared to what my mum went through for months during her fight with breast cancer. Whenever things got tough, I reminded myself to just keep moving forward and get over that finish line.

"The support on the course is absolutely nuts - you have to be there to experience it, but it feels like all of Wales is there behind you - just incredible and you feel like a superstar for a few hours!"

Download our Nub News App!

- It’s FREE and available now
- Breaking news notifications
- Your Town in Your Pocket

David, who has now completed six Ironman Challenges, was one of more than 3,000 athletes, professionals and amateurs, who joined in one of Wales' biggest sporting events which included the 112-mile (180.2 km) bike course (image supplied)

This IRONMAN marked a return to the town where the inspiration for David's award-winning Warwickshire Gin Company was born. It was his visit to Tenby Gin in 2018 which inspired his journey to entrepreneurship prompting him to leave his retail and logistics career of 28 years to launch a distillery business in Leamington.

Reflecting on his challenge, David added: "Thank you to everyone who supported me throughout the training and on race day. From over 3,000 miles on the bike and 500 miles in my trainers, right through to the finish line, your encouragement meant more than you'll ever know.

"Just over 16 hours in total, not my quickest - it wasn't about breaking records though. I was never going to be back to my best eight years after doing the last one, and with the other challenges on the day, I'm just incredibly grateful to have completed it. This one was for Mum."

Donate to David's fundraiser page here.

He is now hoping to further build on the £2,000 already raised for Breast Cancer Research (image supplied)