SUPER fit Dean Sargeant is gearing up for the challenge of a lifetime.

Not content with tackling a two-way swim across the Severn estuary in aid of the Severn Trent Rescue Association last November. Dean is now in training for an Iron Man triathlon in Nice, France, on June 25. Dean will attempt to swim 2.4 miles in the sea, before cycling 112 miles at an altitude of 1,500m.

He will then finish the event by running a 26.2-mile marathon, all in the same day. The 37-year-old engineering manager, from Dynatherm in Aston Fields, cycles to work several times a week from his home in Dudley, and practices at the Dolphin Centre in School Drive most lunchtimes.

He has already raised £600 for Cancer Research UK, but is looking for further sponsorship to take him over the £1,000 mark.

"I'm putting in around 12 hours training a week, sometimes peaking at 21 hours, and it's having its highs and lows," he said. "I've hit a stumbling block with fundraising though, so I'm looking for people to sponsor me."

For more information visit www.sealskin.net, or to sponsor Dean call 07759 136505.