A special good luck to estate agent Alex Beresford, pictured, who is in training for a half marathon to raise money for the British Heart Foundation.

Nothing so unusual about that – except that it is only just over a year after Alex underwent open heart surgery at the age of 26.

Alex, who is manager of Beresfords’ Chelmsford branch in Essex, is taking part in the Brentwood Half Marathon on Sunday.

First diagnosed in September 2013 as a heart murmur, Alex was referred for an ultrasound and a CT scan which identified both a leaky bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) and an aneurysm of the aortic root.

In February last year Alex underwent open heart surgery at the Royal Brompton hospital in Chelsea where the revolutionary ‘David Procedure’ was used to fix both the aneurysm and the valve.

Alex said he had set the goal to run the half marathon before his operation.

The BHF has funded research which has revolutionised the way in which heart conditions are diagnosed and treated, and Alex said: “If it wasn’t for their work I may have not been able to undergo the procedure that I did.

“I hope to raise £300 for the charity and in conjunction with friends who are also taking part we hope to exceed £1,000.”

By last night, Alex had already exceeded his own £300 target. His Just Giving page is here