Next weekend will see Krishan Solanki attempt to become the fastest man to complete a half marathon in a sari at the Great North Run.
Krishan, 33, is taking part in the race in order to raise money for Muscular Dystrophy UK - in honour of his sister Anjali who has the congenital form of the condition, which causes muscle weakness from birth. Krishan, from Stanmore in north London, is eschewing the usual sportswear and instead pairing running shoes with his grandmother's sari.
Wearing the sari will restrict his stride-length, and to get the Guinness World Record Krishan - who also works at the charity - will need to finish in under two hours.
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He said: "The Great North Run is the world’s biggest half marathon with 60,000 running on the day. It is a bucket list event, which I haven’t completed yet. I have done tougher challenges than this so I had to think out of the box to make it harder and something people would want to donate towards.
"I wanted to wear something different for the fancy dress side of the challenge and something that was a nod towards my Indian heritage. As this is a ladies' dress, it is something that stands out and makes people take notice and want to support me. I hope it will also help raise awareness for muscle wasting conditions and make a difference."
As congenital muscular dystrophy is present from birth, Krishan's sister Anjali has never been able to walk. He added: “I hope that by [completing the Guinness World Record attempt] people will look up muscular dystrophy and see what the charity does and how they can help. The condition and charity are not as well-known as they should be, so any extra awareness I can raise will be fantastic."
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