ARCHITECTURE graduate Will Bright has been building himself up for a career in the Army by cycling 3,000 miles from Istanbul to London.

Mr Bright, 23, from Summertown, Oxford, set off on the mammoth cycle ride last month to raise money for the Forces charity Help for Heroes.

In September, he is off to Sandhurst to begin officer training before joining The Rifles, the largest infantry regiment in the British Army.

But first he is covering 75 miles a day across 14 countries and hopes to raise at least £1,000 for the charity. So far, he has raised more than £500.

Before setting off, Mr Bright said: “I know how many people raise money for charity but I hope this effort will be a little different from the odd marathon.”

He added the ride would take eight weeks in total and that he was investing £2,400 of his own money in the trip.

Mr Bright flew out to Istanbul with his bike and kit and had to reassemble it before pedalling off.

He has travelled through Turkey, Greece, Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, Germany, France, Luxembourg and Belgium.

He plans to end his journey in Hyde Park in London today.

Mr Bright’s friends Alex Keith and Stuart Gordon helped him prepare for the trip.

Mr Keith said: “Will was in the Navy Reserves when he was studying architecture at Newcastle University.

“He has always been driven to join the forces and this is a great effort on behalf of Help for Heroes.

“Will has set up a justgiving page with a rather meagre target of £1,000 to be raised, but we want to see if we can help him smash this target and get the recognition he deserves.

“He has been covering about 75 miles a day and, with provisions weighing nearly 40 kilograms, this is no mean feat.

“He has had quite a few adventures along the way including killing snakes and sleeping next to dustbins on the motorway.”

Help for Heroes was founded by Bryn and Emma Parry in October 2007 to help wounded servicemen and women returning from Afghanistan and Iraq.

Earlier this month Prince William officially opened the Help for Heroes rehabilitation complex at Headley Court, Surrey, for wounded servicemen.

Since Help for Heroes started, thousands of fundraising events have been staged across the country raising funds for servicemen.

  • To make a donation visit justgiving.com /brighty-cycle