Sky commentator joined by Morne du Plessis around Cape Town
Thursday 10 December 2015 17:53, UK
Sir Ian Botham kicked off the first day of his Walking the Rainbow Nation charity walk in the stunning surroundings of Cape Town.
Botham - who turned 60 in November - is embarking on an eight-day, 110-mile trek around South Africa, 30 years on from his first walk from John O'Groats to Land's End.
Despite the miles on the tank, and a difficult first day's walking in Cape Town, Botham shows no signs of stopping.
"Everyone thinks it's my last walk, but it's not," he said. "I've got at least one more lined up.
"One of the problems from the last walk in Sri Lanka, in 2013, was the heat was so intense that a lot of people couldn't keep up, and it was too dangerous in 50-plus degree temperatures.
"I was checked out a couple of times by medical staff today [Thursday] after overdoing it a little on that last trip, and I have slowed the pace down, to let everyone just enjoy it as we've had a lot of people who have raised a lot of money to join the walk.
"We're not doing massive distances this time, just 10-20 miles, which is far enough when you get to 60!"
The first leg of Botham's latest walk was a 16-mile effort along the picturesque Cape Town coastline from Table Bay Hotel to Llandudno Beach.
Dozens of walkers were joined by local schoolchildren, as well as former Springbok captain Morne du Plessis, and the late-arriving ex-Liverpool and England international, John Barnes - delayed flying in from Johannesburg.
"He should be worried," Botham said of Barnes. "He parked his car at the top of the hill for the final part of the walk down to Llandudno and has had a nice gentle stroll down it. But he isn't likely to enjoy the trip back up.
"He parked his car at the top of the hill for the final part of the walk down to Llandudno and has had a nice gentle stroll down it. But he isn't likely to enjoy the trip back up."
"It's great to have him and Morne - who has joined me on past walks - support us. Hopefully we'll have a few more turning up throughout the week.
"The public were responsive, too - there were loads of kids with us for the final part of the walk, who are having a ball. I think the walk will just snowball now, and we'll raise the money we want to."
Botham is supporting four charities in South Africa, with the first day's walk dedicated to the Waitrose Foundation, which aids farm workers and their families.
The other three include children's charities, Nazareth House Cape Town and Kliptown Youth Program, and the Chipembere Rhino Foundation.
"All of the charities I'm supporting will have an equal share of the attention," added Botham. "Tomorrow's walk - which is on a really steep incline - is for Nazareth House.
"They're all terrific charities, and it was very difficult to pick only four, as you could pick over 400 here that are worthy. But we've tried to cover all bases and I think we've achieved that.
"It was a great first day, everyone was pumped up, and I'm looking forward to the rest of the week. Seven more to come!"
Follow Sir Ian Botham's walk on Sky Sports News HQ and skysports.com.
