Epic 23-hour fundraising run for Christchurch teenager Enzo

Anthony Martin during the 100km run at Diamond Harbour. Photo: Supplied
Anthony Martin during the 100km run at Diamond Harbour. Photo: Supplied
Anthony Martin’s 100km run in Diamond Harbour took him more than 23 hours to complete - and at the end all he wanted was a cup of Irish tea.

Anthony Martin.
Anthony Martin.
Martin ran 100km with a 3600m elevation earlier this month to raise money for Redcliffs teenager, Enzo Halliburton, who suffered a spinal injury in early 2020. 

Enzo, now 18, was involved in a swimming accident at Moncks Bay in January last year.

While swimming with friends, Enzo dived into the water and did not resurface.

He had seriously injured his spine and his friends had to perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation before the ambulance arrived.

Enzo suffered a C5-C7 spinal injury and is now a tetraplegic.

Enzo Halliburton was playing with mates on a sand island in the middle of an estuary in Moncks...
Enzo Halliburton was playing with mates on a sand island in the middle of an estuary in Moncks Bay when he dived into the water and did not resurface. Photo: NZH
Martin, 35, has a work colleague whose son was with Enzo that day.

After hearing Enzo’s story, Martin decided he wanted to do something to help raise money for a specialised bike for Enzo.

This was the first ultra-marathon distance Martin had ran.

During training, he experienced what he described as a "drawback". He ruptured his hamstring in two places, tore the cartilage in his hip and had to get his Achilles tendon reattached.

On the day of the run, Martin joined in on part of the Krayzie K’s ultra-trail running event. The temperature was 27 deg C.

"Being an Irish lad, I’m not built for heat," said Martin.

The 100km took him 23hr 38min. Thinking about Enzo and what he had gone through got Martin through those last hours.

On the day of Anthony Martin's run it was 27 deg C in Christchurch. Photo: Supplied
On the day of Anthony Martin's run it was 27 deg C in Christchurch. Photo: Supplied
"Even in the worst pain that I was in, it’s still a drop in the ocean of the reality of being tetraplegic," he said.

When he finally crossed the finish line at 8.25am the next day, there was one thing on Martin’s mind: "All I wanted was a cup of tea, there was no tea [at the finish line] so I drove to my mates and he had some Irish tea bags, it was perfect."

  • Donate to Enzo’s cause here. As of Monday, almost $1000 had been raised.