A Barry man will be taking on IRONMAN Wales for an Armed Forces charity.
Sam Ekstrom-Gabb will be participating in the IRONMAN challenge in Tenby on September 22 to raise funds for SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity.
Mr Ekstrom-Gabb is not in the Armed Forces himself, but his father served in the RAF in supplier logistics at Stafford, Benson, and Oxfordshire.
His father, Stewart, created a charity rugby team named Celtic Rail Rugby, which Mr Ekstrom-Gabb played for almost 20 years.
Each year, the team would select a charity to represent and raise funds for, and last year, that charity was SSAFA.
Mr Ekstrom-Gabb said: "It made sense to pick SSAFA – many members on the team are current and former servicemembers.
"We did a tour of France, hiking, playing matches and raising funds along the way.
"We raised just under £10,000 for SSAFA."
Mr Ekstrom-Gabb has been training for months in preparation for IRONMAN Wales, a gruelling challenge event that begins with a 2.4-mile swim, followed by a 112-mile cycle around Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, and finishes with a 26.2-mile marathon in and around Tenby.
Mr Ekstrom-Gabb has also been training for a completely different upcoming challenge: becoming a father.
He is expecting the birth of his first child in four weeks' time, shortly after completing the IRONMAN Wales challenge.
If you would like to donate to Mr Ekstrom-Gabb's fundraising efforts, you can do so here: www.justgiving.com/page/ssafa-ironmantenby.
SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity is a trusted source of support for serving personnel, veterans, and their families.
In 2022, the trained teams of volunteers and employees helped more than 59,000 people, including veterans, serving personnel (regulars and reserves) and their families.
Since 1885, SSAFA has provided welfare and wellbeing assistance that is tailored to the Armed Forces community.
The charity understands the unique demands of service life, whether in the UK or overseas, and continues to meet the demand for support to enable the entire Armed Forces family to thrive.
More information about SSAFA can be found on the SSAFA website.
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