Professional boxer Nico ‘Lightning’ Leivars from Mansfield will walk 25 miles this Saturday to raise £3,000 for the Royal British Legion.

Nico, who turned pro this month with the target of becoming world champion, has teamed up with three veterans to raise money for the nation’s leading Armed Forces charity.

The 22-year-old bantamweight said: “I am doing this 25-mile walk, visiting all the local war memorials around Mansfield, firstly to raise money for a great cause, but also to raise awareness of the Royal British Legion.”

Nico has won national and international titles at junior, youth and senior level, whilst also representing Great Britain at various tournaments around the world.

He will be joined on the walk by four veterans, Mark Wells, Jay Hemmings, Lawrence Tebbitt and Dale Simkins, all from Mansfield.

Dale said: “Nico approached us and said he wanted to do something to raise money for the RBL so we immediately came up with the idea of walking to every war memorial in the town.

“He is very passionate about the RBL, he marks Remembrance with us every year and it’s something that’s close to his heart. We’re hoping to have around 20-25 people joining us on the route this weekend, and we’re setting off from Mansfield Town Football Club at 08:00am on Saturday. Nico is a massive Stags fan!”

Dale served for 24 years after joining the Parachute Regiment and did tours of Northern Ireland, Afghanistan, Iraq and Kosovo before leaving Service in 2014. He said: “We are all members of the RBL so it’s great to have the support of someone like Nico.”

Anne-Marie Jones, Community Fundraising Manager for the RBL in the East Midlands, said: “We wish Nico and his team al the vert best for this weekend, it is a fantastic effort and we are very proud that he has chosen to support the Royal British Legion.”

To support Nico’s War Memorial Walk for Veterans visit the JustGiving page at https://bit.ly/33BJEZ8