Speedo Mick has been forced to pull out of his incredible 1,000 mile charity walk today after being struck down by injury.
The dedicated fundraiser, aka Mick Cullen, was almost half way through the mammoth task of walking from John O'Groats to Land's End, in just his trusty speedos, when pain hit.
The 55-year-old was between Preston and Ormskirk when a painful and inflamed right calf forced him to stop walking on Thursday afternoon.
Mick, who was hoping to reach Liverpool and meet his supporters on Saturday, was then driven to a hotel in Ormskirk before seeing a physio.
He told the ECHO: "My calf has been getting bigger and bigger – and it’s just gone now.”
"I couldn’t put any weight on my leg when I got out of the car.
"I’m going to take some anti-inflammatories, but the way it feels now I can’t see that I’ll be able to walk on it on Friday.”
Mick posted a video on his Twitter account explaining that he didn’t want to jeopardise the rest of his task by continuing to walk with his injury.
But he is hopeful he will be back pounding the pavements sooner rather than later and is looking forward to being at Goodison Park on Saturday as planned.
Just hours before being forced to take a break, Mick said: “It will feel really strange when I arrive in Liverpool.
"It will feel like I’m finishing my walk – but I’m only just over halfway through. My mind is boggled!”
Regarding the reception he would be sure to get, Mick, 55, from Dovecot, added: “I don’t want to build my expectations up – it’s not like the Fab Four are coming through!”
He received a rapturous welcome at Anfield last Sunday, when he took a day off from his walk to watch the Merseyside derby.
A ticket was provided from Liverpool FC’s Red Neighbours allocation, while Reds’ captain Jordan Henderson heaped praise on Mick in his programme notes.
Mick said: "The generosity shown by Liverpool FC was just wonderful.”
He said he was also grateful to be able to receive physio treatment at Everton FC’s Finch Farm training ground the following day.
Mick is setting up a charity, Leave The Light On which will run community projects for people, young and old, who feel isolated.
His initial target was £50,000, but this was passed before Mick had even left Scotland.
A new £100,000 target was set and, at the time of writing, around £86,000 has been raised.
Talking about the generosity he has witnessed, Mick said: “It keeps me boosted – I look at the donation page in the morning and it fills my heart with joy – and warms me up!”
Before injury struck, Mick was due to finish his walk at Land’s End on February 8.
After Liverpool, Mick’s next destination will be Warrington.
To find out more about Mick's fundraising task or to donate, you can check out his GoFundMe page HERE .
