A RUNNER from Malvern has a busy weekend coming up as he attempts to break an unusual world record.

Kieran Deegan will run the London Marathon dressed as a ventilator as he attempts to raise support and awareness for the breast cancer charity Against Breast Cancer.

He will attempt to break the Guinness World Record for "Fastest marathon dressed as a piece of medical equipment."

The 37 year-old works as a ventilator technician servicing the life-saving equipment, so said the choice of costume would resonate with everyone.

He said: "Everyone will have encountered ventilators over the last 18 months, so it will resonate with a lot of people.

"So far we have raised £1,200 so it will be great to get some awareness out there."

The outfit, designed to look like an Oxylog 3000+ ventilator, was made by a company in Nottingham specialising in pantomime costumes.

Mr Deegan said there had been a couple of re-designs after some issues in testing.

He said: "I have run a couple of half-marathons in the outfit, one in Leamington Spa and one in Kenilworth.

"With the first one it rubbed the back of my knees and made them bleed, so I ended up having to carry the costume.

"The second time it made my arms bleed, so we've had to redesign it a bit.

"Running in a big costume like this is so different.

"Obviously running in your normal running kit, you can run a lot faster and with more freedom of movement whereas this outfit can be tricky.

"I'll be running twice the distance of what I've done in testing, so it will be a real challenge."

This weekend will see Mr Deegan travel to London for the marathon, which gets underway on October 3.

He has been in contact with the Guinness Book of World Records, who will be on-hand to verify his world record, should he set one.

He has also set up a JustGiving page where people can go to donate and show their support.

For more information, go to www.justgiving.com/fundraising/runkd