Sport Stars Get Behind Swansea Dad's Fundraiser

His son Jacob was born 16 months ago with the rare genetic condition which can cause developmental issues. In August the tot underwent open heart surgery.

Williams Syndrome affects 1 in 10,000 people. Mark said until his son was diagnosed with the condition he hadn't heard of it. He hopes Jacob's story will help raise awareness.

Mark used to compete as a bodybuilder and was Welsh UKBBF champion in 2007, a runner-up in the British finals and won the Welsh PCA over 40s bodybuilding in 2016. He has many friends in the world of fitness and sport. Seven times Mr Olympia Flex Lewis, British and Commonwealth Welterweight Champion Chris Jenkins and MMA Welsh mixed martial artist Brett Johns are among those who have taken to Twitter posting video messages of support.

In a month's time Mark will be taking on a massive walking challenge to help raise funds too he told us: "I decided to walk from Bristol Children's Hospital where Jacob was treated back to Swansea. I think it's about 84 miles I am going to try and do that in 30 hours. It's going to be challenging, but I don't think it's as half as challenging as what my wife and son have gone through."

The past few months have been tough for the family - they have had to shield due to Jacob's condition. Then they were told he would need to have open heart surgery in August. It was a big worry for both Mark and Natasha because of the potential risks: "It's very dangerous for a child with Williams Syndrome to have anaesthetic, because of the implications of cardiac arrest etc. It's much more dangerous for a normal person to go under anaesthetic.

"We didn't really talk about it together. It was too painful for us to actually speak to each other. It was heart wrenching really. Like most nights I was crying going to bed, crying when I got up thinking the worst was going to happen all the time. My wife was a lot stronger than me. "

You can LISTEN to interview here:

With Jacob now making a good recovery, mum Natasha feels now is the right time to raise awareness and get their story out there: "I wanted people to hear about our journey and maybe relate to it. If it just helps one person, so they don't feel as alone as us and they get support, then I think that would be brilliant. It is quite lonely when you think no one else understands. When Jacob was having sleep problems I didn't know who to speak to. I didn't know whether it was him just being a needy child or down to the Williams Syndrome. It's important for other people to know what it is like."

Natasha is delighted with how Jacob is progressing after his surgery saying: "He's really happy - when he wakes up in the morning he's jumping in his cot and shouting mama. Even if you are having a bad day, you just see him and he is smiling all the time. He is lovely. Every time I think he might take longer to do something, like his standing, even his physio is shocked how he is coming along."

Listen to interview with Natasha here:

If you want to help Mark and Natasha raise money to help support families like them clink this link for more details: