A RIBBLE Valley sports nutrition company will be fuelling Sir Ranulph Fiennes on his epic bid to become the first man to complete seven marathons on seven different continents in seven days.

Science in Sport, based at Brockhall Village, has supplied a range of its energy products to the veteran endurance world record breaker.

Sir Ranulph and and his partner Dr Mike Stroud will be starting their marathon attempt on Sunday in the Antarctic complete with energy gels, energy bars and energy drinks.

Jean Lawson, managing director of Science in Sport, said the whole company would be following the world record bid. "We are extremely pleased that Ran has chosen to use our products again on this very demanding challenge," she said.

"We have supported Ran with products and nutritional advice in recent years when he has been competing in adventure races and mountain marathons. This latest challenge will test our products to the full and are confident that they will provide both Ran and Mike with the energy to succeed."

What makes the bid even more astonishing is that Sir Ranulph suffered a near fatal heart attack just four months ago. He and fellow explorer and expert in endurance nutrition Dr Stroud will also carry a portable defibrillator on each marathon in case Ran has any heart problems.

Sir Ranulph said he was putting his faith in Science in Sport too: "Over the years, I have tried many different energy and sports nutrition products and find SiS GO-GELS by far the best in terms of ease of use on the move and immediate results."

Science in Sport was set up 10 years ago and has developed a range of energy products that are used by most of the clubs in the Premiership and by the England football team - including at last year's world cup finals. Other top athletes powered by Science in Sport include Burnley's World Superbike champion Neil Hodgson, cyclist Chris Boardman and World Triple Jump record holder Ashia Hanson.

After the first marathon challenge in the Antarctic, Sir Ranulph and Dr Stroud move to Santiago, Sydney, Singapore, London, Cairo and finish in New York on November 2.