Chris Moreton has just completed 12 marathons in 10 months - aged 70.

The Rebel Runners man set out to run 12 marathons in as many months after taking on the 12 in 12 challenge.

But he’s reached his target with two months to spare after crossing the line with wife Sue and son Jon at the Cyclopark.

Moreton only took up running in his 60s but he’s certainly made up for lost time, throwing himself into his hobby.

Previous attempts to complete the 12 in 12 have been scuppered by Covid and injury, but there was no stopping him this time.

“It’s called 12 in 12 but because you never know what’s going to happen, I knocked them out as quick as I could, hence why it only took 10 months,” said Moreton.

“I was part-way through it a couple of years ago when the pandemic hit.

“The following year I ended up with Achilles tendinitis, which put the block on it, and then I got Covid myself.

“I’m over Covid now, although I’m still not as fit as I used to be, but I’m getting there.

“The wife also runs, she copped it as well, we were both the same, everyone in our running circle who got Covid seemed to take a little while to get over it with the breathing and stuff.”

Moreton completed his marathons at Saxons, Vikings and Normans (SVN) events across Kent, with Betteshanger and Samphire Hoe among the other venues.

It’s a challenge that would

test runners half his age, so what’s the secret of his success?

“Just keep going, basically,” he said. “A lot of it is determination and getting it done. You want to do it, so you’ll do it. It is hard, and the last one was the worst one I’ve done for a little while.

“You’ve got to be fit, and I do run with Rebel Runners two or three times a week and I do parkrun on Saturdays.

“So I’m normally out running three or four times a week and you just build yourself up.

“That’s basically how I started with SVN. We wanted to do a 10k, a challenge to put ourselves out, and all of a sudden you’re up to a half-marathon.

“You’re then thinking, ‘OK, fair enough, if I can do a half, maybe I can do a bit more’. They do have people that do accidental marathons where they go out to stretch themselves, get to 15 or 16 miles and decide to carry on where they feel OK.

“It’s great. Everyone who runs is very supportive.

“My marathons are all over six hours, so I’m not super-fast and at my age I don’t expect to be. My fastest is about 6hr02min.

“I certainly felt 70 after the last marathon, I probably felt about 102!

“I do look at some people and think, ‘I’m older than you but I can see I’m fitter than you’ and that’s not being disrespectful.

“I’m really lucky that I can do what I do and I’ve got great support from family and friends and the running community.”

Moreton is likely to turn his attention back to half-marathons for a while.

Wife Sue has previously completed the 12 in 12 half-marathon challenge and Chris is keen to boost his numbers.

He said: “I’ll be quite honest, I’m more likely to drop to half-marathons now and see how I go. A couple of people I know

are in the 100 club. Whether I get that far is another matter. I think I’ve done about 22.”