I'm learning to swim for an Ironman triathlon in memory of my wife

A man whose wife died six months after being diagnosed with a brain tumour is entering a gruelling triathlon - even though he is still learning to swim. Alan Johnstone is aiming to compete in the Austrian Ironman competition, which involves a 2.4-mile (3.8km) open-water swim, a 112-mile (180km) bike ride and a 26.2-mile (42km) run. The 41-year-old is raising money for charity in memory of his childhood sweetheart, Anneka, who was 33 when she died in 2019. Since then Alan, from Dumfries, has raised more than £100,000 but the former RAF engineer admits his latest challenge will be his toughest yet. Their daughter, Sienna, was 13 months old when her mother died from an aggressive glioblastoma. The former NHS dietitian had been fit and healthy but within a month of her diagnosis, she was unable to walk. ''It started with some balance issues and at first the doctors thought it might have been herpes simplex virus (HSV)," Alan said. "She was given antibiotics but there was no improvement after 24 hours. ''She was taken for an MRI scan and we were warned it would either show inflammation of the brain or a brain tumour." Alan said they then received "the worst news you could ever expect".