A BUS driver is to take on an adrenaline pumping challenge in aid of charity.

As part of Sport Relief in Wales, which runs every day from March 17 to 23, rugby hero Gareth ‘Alfie’ Thomas is leading the charge by facing up to his biggest fear - to skydive from 12,000 feet.

He will be joined by a team of people aged over 60 who have never parachuted before, including father-of-three Peter Bowen from Wrexham.

Mr Bowen, 69, works at the Rainbow Centre in Penley, driving the bus to make sure older people always have a way of getting to the centre.

Thanks to funds from Comic Relief, the Rainbow Centre offers a safe place for the elderly, providing day care and activities encouraging them to socialise.

Mr Bowen, who said he couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate his 70th year than by doing a skydive, told the Leader: "I've been going through the procedure every day of the things I have to do when I'm in the plane.

"I'm excited but scared at the same time, which is where I should be at this stage, I think.

"I wanted to do this when I was younger but I was too busy playing cricket - I've just got to not look down and jump."

Gareth Thomas said: “I love a challenge, but this is going to be incredibly hard for me. My trainers are doing everything they can to help me conquer this fear but it’s going to be tough.

"I hope I can rise to the occasion and raise some serious money for Sport Relief in the process.”

Recruited from the four corners of Wales, Mr Thomas' skydivers will be his support system to conquer his fear as they all take to the air.

To calm his nerves ahead of the jump, he will try his hand at a range of high-altitude challenges, including mountain climbing in Snowdonia.

He will also meet his new team mates and also get a first-hand insight into what it's like to grow older in modern Britain.

The team’s adventures will be filmed for an extra-special BBC Wales documentary, Gareth Thomas’ Silver Skydivers for Sport Relief.

Mr Thomas' feat is just one in a long list of challenges on the cards for this year’s Sport Relief. For the first time, the entire nation has been given a collective mission to beat a billion steps a day, every day from March 17 to 23, tracking their progress through the brand-new Sport Relief app.

For more information on how to get involved with this year’s Sport Relief campaign, download the Sport Relief App for free or go to sportrelief.com.