Running a half-marathon is hard enough for most people, but try doing it in a full set of medieval-era armour.

That's exactly what Taupō's Kane van Lit​ will be doing next Saturday as he takes on the Middle-earth Halfling Marathon at Hobbiton in Matamata – all while raising funds for Ukrainian orphans.

The 33-year-old van Lit will be decked out in circa-1066 Anglo-Saxon chainmail and helmet and will be carrying a round shield and battleaxe, all weighing around 20kg, as he tackles the 21.1km half-marathon.

He said the inspiration behind his fundraising run came from his grandparents, three of whom lived in Europe during World War II and were badly affected by the war.

"My oma (Dutch grandmother) was a child during WWII and had their house hit during an air raid and only had one room left for the family to live in.

"My opa (Dutch grandfather) saw his mother shot in front of him by a soldier when their town was occupied in the Netherlands, and my grandad who recently passed away was orphaned in London as his father had to serve for England during WWII."

He said he grew up in New Zealand in relative peace and comfort, “...but was educated by my grandparents on the terrible horrors war inflicts on people, so this is a chance to help the little ones affected by these same horrors”.

“The situation in Ukraine seems to be very grim for those children...so I hope me running for this charity gives the orphans of war today the same chance to survive and grow to create families of their own,” he said.

Born and bred in Taupō, van Lit joined the New Zealand Defence Force in 2007 and served as an infantryman until 2018 when he changed roles to become a general engineer.

"This has helped me to transfer valuable physical and mental skills to move over long distances with heavy modern military equipment to running in historic military equipment that I will be using in the Halfling marathon."

He said being a fan of the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies also helped.

“Running in this equipment fits into the overall Middle-earth theme and I have trained in film locations for the Halfling marathon which makes preparing for this challenge more enjoyable.”

Now based in Palmerston North at the Linton Military Camp, van Lit returns home as much as he can.

“People in Taupō may have seen me training for the half-marathon in my 1066-era equipment on the many forest walks and tracks in places like the Huka Falls walk and Mount Tauhara.”

As you may have guessed, van Lit has a passion for medieval warfare that sees him complete in full contact medieval combat tournaments for the Hutt Valley Stags.

He said training in armour took a bit of getting used to, but he’s managed to complete a run of 14km and is confident he’ll complete the 21.1km half-marathon next week.

van Lit is raising money for the Ukraine Orphan Fund Poland. To make a donation visit www.gofundme.com/f/ukraine-orphan-fund.

Credit: Stuff.co.nz