Portslade Man To Run Distance Between Amex And Ukraine To Raise Money For Medical Aid

A football fan from Portslade, whose partner is Ukrainian, has pledged to run 1,569 miles between two stadiums so he can send medical supplies to Ukraine.

Anthony Seddon, 40, met his wife Anna when she was a journalist in Dnipro, while he was traveling around Europe in a campervan watching Euro 2012 football games.

Anthony and Anna in Lviv

He says they met by chance when his van broke down and kept in touch, visiting each other whenever they had the chance, eventually marrying 15 months later and moving to Portslade.

They now have two daughters, Gabriella and Arlia. Anthony said:

"My wife is Ukrainian and my mother-in-law moved in with us on 9th March after a five-day journey from Dnipro to escape the war. Not wanting to be separated, my brother-in-law and his family are still there. Most of my wife's friends are in Dnipro. Many are now fighting."

Although Anna's mother was able to come to the UK thanks to Anna's status, her brother and his family are unable to join their mother and sister here:

"We’d love to get all the family over with us but unfortunately it’s impossible. Anna’s brother, Alexei, cannot leave as no men between 18-60 are allowed to. Understandably, his wife doesn’t want to leave him behind so they and their two-year-old son are staying there." 

"After much persuasion we managed to convince Anna’s mother Vira to come and stay with us. Even after an arduous five-day journey through Ukraine to Slovakia and finally flying to England, she still wants to return as soon as she can, back to what’s left of her normal life."

Anna said: 

"All I can do is hope for the best that my family and friends in Ukraine will survive. Their spirit is strong and this is what inspires me to stay strong as well."

Having been a lifelong Albion fan, Anthony decided to keep his challenge "football-themed" by running the distance between the Amex and Anna's local stadium in Dnipro.

At the FC Dnipro Arena 2012

The distance of 1,569 miles will be taken on 10k at a time as well as by running marathons, starting in Worthing this Sunday with a half marathon.

He says he'll run every weekend, apart from one weekend every three weeks where he'll drive his van to the Polish border and drop off medical supplies to Anna's friend, who will transport them to Lviv.

Money raised from his challenge will go towards transport costs.

When asked how long he thought the run might take, Anthony said:

“I’m aiming for between 2-3 years so I’m sure I’ll be back in Worthing again. I hope the conflict is over long before I finish and instead of medical aid, we’ll be fundraising to help rebuild a free and independent Ukraine".

"I am also trying to inspire the public to run with me for one-off local events to help fundraise for the cause. We have had a great response so far with five of us running in Worthing this week."

Anthony will be at Lewes Football Club this weekend - they've got behind his fundraising efforts and given him permission to do a bucket collection at this weekend's game.

To donate to their go fund me page go here: 

There's more information on their website: https://www.run2ukraine.org