A CHARITY fundraiser is taking on the ultimate challenge to raise money for Eastern European countries.

Stewart Pickup, 31, from Leigh, will be undertaking a Canalathon ultra marathon on March 27 – a 62-mile race across the Yorkshire and Lancashire counties.

The BT Openreach worker first began raising money for charity in 2013 after a friend asked whether he would help to raise money for Communication Workers Union Humanitarian Aid (CWUHA).

The charity is run entirely by volunteers, who deliver aid to needy countries as well as the UK.

He took part in an iron-distance triathlon and raised more than £2,000, which he donated on a month-long trip to the Kilima Hewa School in Moshi, Tanzania – one of the many causes CWUHA supports throughout the world.

The money was used to buy much needed equipment, food and harvesting machinery, as well as to upgrade toilets and electricity.

Stewart said: “It is such a beautiful place and the people are just amazing.

“They are so happy even though they don’t have anything that we have got.

“They are just smiling all the time.

“They money raised goes so far for them and you can actually see how it has helped them.”

Although Stewart has done marathons in the past, the upcoming challenge is more than twice the distance of a normal marathon.

The father-of-one added: “I can’t say I am looking forward to it.

“Last year I was probably the fittest I have been, but then I got a knee injury while I was doing the Chester Marathon.

"But I am sure I will be okay."

Stewart has already booked his next challenge for 2017 – the Jungle Ultra Marathon, which is a 230km run through the Peruvian jungle.

He said: “I don’t think I will stop raising money for the charity now and I hope to be able to go out there again sometime this year.

"I haven't got a target amount, I just want to raise as much as possible.”

To support Stewart in his challenge go to bit.ly/1OrGYeQ. To learn more about CWUHA visit cwuha.org .