A PODIATRIST from York and her father are preparing to brave the searing heat of the Sahara Desert in the "toughest footrace on Earth" for two charities close to their hearts.

Holly and Clive Millar will be tackling the extreme desert marathon, Marathon Des Sables, in southern Morocco, in aid of Cancer Research and Dementia UK.

The six-day multi-stage 250-kilometre ultra run takes place amid the baking sun and 120 degree heat of the Sahara Desert.

To make the challenge even tougher, competitors must be, with the exception of rationed water, fully self-sufficient for the duration of the race.

They are planning to compete in the event in April next year.

Holly, 25, of Dringfield Close, Dringhouses, said: "We are raising money for these brilliant charities as they are close to our hearts. My papa [Clive's dad] suffers dementia and we understand how difficult it is for both him and my nana having to deal with it as well.

"My dad's sister sadly past away in the summer after a battle with cancer. This is when we decided it was now or never and entered the run. We also have other close friends and family who are still battling or have battled with cancer, some beating it others sadly not. We acknowledge the hard and wonderful work these charities do and want to try and do our bit."

While Holly now lives in York, Clive, 52, is an arable and poultry farmer in the Scottish Borders, which is where Holly was born and raised.

She says they are both keen sports people and are a "competitive" family.

"It is something we both had on our bucket lists and the passing of my aunt hit home hard and made the final decision that we would bite the bullet and do it," she added.

Both of them have run marathons in the past, and Clive has also done an Ironman race.

Holly and Clive have already begun training for the gruelling desert challenge.

Holly explained: "We are slowly building up running with weighted backpacks, currently about 4.5kg and we need to build up to about 12kg.

"In May we are looking at being able to run 30 miles and by end of August do a 50 miler. We have also entered the York marathon in October as a training run."

They are both hoping to raise as much money as possible for the charities.