The cheering crowds egged a Sidmouth web developer over the finish line of his ‘gruelling’ first marathon in the capital on Sunday.

Running was never something Mike Leworthy thought he would get into, but the opportunity came up through his work – and he had just 11 weeks to train.

The 35-year-old chose to back Macmillan Cancer Support and Devon Air Ambulance and has netted £490 between them so far.

Sidmothian Mike, of Howarth Close, said: “Places for the marathon are almost impossible to get, so I was very lucky to have been given one.

“The race was much tougher than I anticipated – it was forecast to be overcast and fairly cool but after the 10am start the heat really picked up. This showed in a lot of the runners suffering dehydration and slower times.

“It was gruelling towards the end and in the last five miles I really had lost all my energy and the pain in my legs and core was unbearable.

“I just had to keep going and tick the miles off, one at a time. I had my girlfriend and friends there for support too which really helped me through!

“The crowd support was a huge surprise – thousands of people were cheering every runner on and I was glad I had my name on my shirt as random strangers would shout for me to keep going. It was so loud, like a huge street party for 26.2 miles!

“The finish line on the Mall was such a welcome sight and just past it the medal was waiting. I’m feeling pretty proud of myself right now – even if I am a little sore.”

Visit www.justgiving.com/companyteams/mike-leworthy to sponsor Mike.