IronBros go extra mile for cerebral palsy

Gemma Dorrington with her daughter Maddy, 5,who has cerebral palsy. Photo / Eugene Bingham

It started as a simple idea - three brothers and a "bro" coming together to help raise money for cerebral palsy.

Somewhere along the line, they decided that the black-tie dinners and auctions weren't challenging enough. So they decided to compete in an Ironman too - and the IronBros were born.

And now they're back on a second endurance and fundraising mission.

"We love the challenge," said chief IronBro, Paul Farnan. "For the Ironman, it was all about the journey, nine months of hard work."

The inspiration for that event, the Ironman Asia-Pacific Championships in Melbourne, 2013 - and the raising of $150,000 - was the daughter of IronBro Greg, Georgia Farnan, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when she was 3. They'd done it to show their support for Georgia.

The IronBros, from left, Matt Webby from Auckland, Chris Farnan from Brisbane, Greg Farnan from Perth and Paul Farnan from Perth.

Two years later, another little girl has inspired the IronBros to get the gang back together - this time to tackle a marathon.

It all came about after Paul met 5-year-old Maddy and her mother Gemma Dorrington, from Auckland's North Shore. "Maddy has cerebral palsy and a condition known as spastic diplegia which means she cannot walk, balance, or carry out daily activities independently," said Gemma.

The Iron Bros have joined a community effort to raise $140,000 to send Maddy to the United States where she will have surgery in May.

"When we heard about Maddy we just thought, 'why don't we get the IronBros back together again? And why don't we create our own marathon?'" said Paul.

For entry details and more information go to ironbros.co.nz