LCpl Dennis Davey is no ordinary man. He is the founder of the Cove Joggers, a legendary runner who spent time in the armed forces, and a serial medal winner.

He received another one last Tuesday when he was presented with a medal for his services to the Armed Forces in a special ceremony at Tilford Care Home.

The event was organised by WO1 Sharon Smith and Major Carl Smith - who both know Dennis Well - to coincide with Armed Forces Week with veterans, runners and family members all in attendance.

Dennis Davey running marathon in 2017
Age hasn’t been a barrier to marathon man, Dennis. (Cove Joggers)

Dennis joined the Royal Corps of Signals in Catterick aged 19 and travelled to places afar as Brunei, Cyprus and Singapore. During his service, Dennis completed his P Coy and was awarded his para wings.

While he may not be able to run as fast now in his day he would have beaten anyone his age. He completed the London Marathon in 2011 and 2014 in under seven hours in his 80s. Between 2010 and 2019 Dennis ran a total of 260 park runs with the Cove Joggers.

Residents and staff enjoyed food, music and fun as Natasha from Get Happy Productions performed classic songs prompting residents and staff to come together and dance.

Members of the armed forces, Cove Joggers all shared stories of Dennis and it was abundantly clear that he was obsessed with running and that is what he was best known for.

A friend of Dennis said: “I even remember the first time I went past him in a race, I got all excited as he was but I expected him to come flying past me seconds later as he was very competitive”.

His latest acquisition will be added to the hundreds of other medals he has acquired from races in North America, Europe and Asia.