TV star Paddy McGuinness has revealed how he was pushed to his "absolute limits" by Sir Chris Hoy while training for his BBC Children In Need ultra-endurance cycle challenge.
The former Top Gear and Take Me Out host, 51, is set to embark on a gruelling 300-mile cycling journey from Wrexham in Wales to Glasgow, Scotland.
Speaking about his intense training sessions with the six-time Olympic champion, he told PA: "Chris Hoy has been absolutely, as you can imagine with someone like him, outstanding, first class, brilliant with his advice."
He added: "I really feel as though everyone’s got behind me on this, and just wants me to do it, so they’re giving me as much help as possible. But it’s been an eye-opener certainly."
He continued: "When I go on a bike ride with Chris, I really know about it, because he pushes me to my absolute limits."
Last month, Sir Chris, one of Britain’s greatest cyclists, announced that he has terminal cancer, and said he was given two to four years left to live following a diagnosis last year. He told The Sunday Times: "You remind yourself, aren’t I lucky that there is medicine I can take that will fend this off for as long as possible."
McGuinness said his motivation for his charity cycle is fuelled by the people he has met who benefit from the money raised by BBC Children In Need.
Paddy shared moving insights into his motivation for taking on the grand challenge for BBC Children In Need, revealing encounters that have spurred him on. "I’ve been to a place called the Seashell Trust, which is a project up near me which Children In Need fund, and I’ve met a young lady called Grace who’s come through her cancer battle," he said.
"She’s on the other side of that, and she’s taking on her own challenge as well."
McGuinness continued by highlighting how public support fuels his efforts: "And when you meet these people... that’s what spurs you on, and when you see the work that’s being done in and around it, and again, when you’re out and about, just people stopping me."
He recounted a touching moment from a recent gig: "I did a gig last night – I’m just on tour at the minute – I came off, I finished the show in Milton Keynes, and when people are applauding at the end and they’re standing up, a fella just ran to the front and handed me a wad of cash, and he gave me £880."
Overwhelmed by the gesture, McGuinness added, "Literally, I’m still on stage, getting applause and stuff, and he was shouting: ‘Children In Need, it’s for Children In Need’. And I was like, ‘That’s so amazing’, you know? So things like that happening is what spur you on."
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Tapping into a sense of nostalgia for his childhood, McGuinness will tackle the challenge atop a Raleigh Chopper, cycling through numerous counties from Flintshire to Lanarkshire. The TV presenter plans to kick off his journey during BBC Radio 2's breakfast show on Monday and aims to culminate on the morning of November 15.
The annual fundraising event, BBC Children In Need, will broadcast at 7pm on both BBC One and BBC iPlayer on November 15.
A behind-the-scenes documentary, Paddy: The Ride of My Life, which will chronicle McGuinness’s journey, is set to air on BBC One from 8-9pm on November 19.
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