A PETERSFIELD man who lost both legs when he was only a few months old was a runner-up in the global hearing specialist’s Amplifon Awards for Brave Britons 2019 Charity Champion category.

David Williamson (40) attended the gala presentation event in the Army and Navy Club in London with his wife Jules, and received his award from the Duke of Kent, at a ceremony hosted by Falklands War hero Simon Weston.

He said: “It was a fantastic day – all the finalists were special people and real heroes. It was a privilege to be among them.”

The Charity Champion category was won by Kiko Matthews, of London, who in the past 12 months has cycled the coastline of Great Britain and Ireland, rallying 1,960 volunteers to clear 3.5 tonnes of waste plastic from more than 70 beaches.

Kiko has twice recovered from tumours and last year became the fastest woman to row single-handedly across the Atlantic, raising money for cancer charities.

David was runner-up in the same category after setting himself some incredible sporting challenges in recent years; in June the ‘Action man amputee’ completed 30 wheelchair marathons in 30 days to raise money for two disabled children and the charity Limb Power.

He did 18 of them at running tracks around London, and the other 12 along Southsea seafront.

The money raised by the gruelling challenge is being divided between three-year-old Felicity Gooderham from Portsmouth, who needs 24-hour care, and four-year-old Emerson Grant, who is paralysed from the waist down.

David, a three-time HBSA Disabled Sportsman of the Year, said: “I was told that pushing 30 marathons in 30 days in a wheelchair was impossible. But I did it anyway.

“Afterwards I was physically exhausted, beaten up and broken down, from day after day of pushing over 26 miles with no time to recover.

“Just getting to the start was often a struggle, but I wrote the names of people close to me who have passed away on my bandages so I was inspired to keep going.”

So far David, who works for Moneybarn vehicle finance company in Bedford Road, Petersfield, has raised more than £16,400. To support him donate at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/dw30in30

Amplifon is the leading global hearing specialist with around 140 UK stores.