Norwich City football player, Tim Klose, made a splash at UEA Sportspark last week as he joined a woman from Norwich on her Channel Challenge.

https://twitter.com/TimmKlose15/status/802131342142095360

Inspired by the Kosovo war, Barbara Reed, an events manager who hails from Switzerland, is currently swimming the length of the English Channel over 10 weeks to raise money for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

When you take up a challenge as hefty as that, you need some strong motivation to keep you going, and along with her childhood experience witnessing the fall-out from the war while in Switzerland, she also has the support of Norwich City footballer, Tim Klose, who joined her for a swim at UEA on Thursday, November 24.

'I sent him a cheeky tweet saying 'Hey Timm, fancy a swim?' and was stunned when he responded saying he thought it was a great idea,' the 29-year-old, who moved to Norwich in 2007 said.

'He was such a lovely guy, really genuine and not at all how you would expect a footballer to be, I loved having the chance to chat with him in my native language and discuss all things Swiss.'

Eastern Daily Press: Barbara Reed is currently swimming 22 miles in 10 days for Doctors Without Borders. Photo: Joe LentonBarbara Reed is currently swimming 22 miles in 10 days for Doctors Without Borders. Photo: Joe Lenton (Image: Original Art Photography by Joe Lenton)

In a post on Twitter, Klose described his morning helping Barbara with her challenge as an 'absolute pleasure' and shared an image of the two of them holding an MSF flag.

MSF, also known as Doctors Without Borders, is an international non-govenmental organisation that works to help those struggling in war-torn regions and provide medical aid.

Ms Reed said: 'Timm was really interested in the charitable side of things and this cause is especially close to my heart.

'Growing up in Switzerland during the war, refugees started to arrive in the country, they came to my school and I was curious about them but there was nothing scary or strange about those children. This is all happening again right now in Aleppo and Calais and I want to spread the message that these people need help and they're just like us.'

She added: 'The images of the suffering in the media are horrific, I know I can't go out there and help, but I can raise money for them, so that's what I'm doing.'

Currently just over half way through her swimming challenge, Barbara aims to raise £2,000 for the charity by the time she completes all 22 miles on December 22.

She said: 'I'm only about 30pc of the way there right now, but it feels amazing to be a small part of raising awareness for the charity and my dearest wish is to present them with a big cheque at the end.'

• To support Barbara in her 22 miles in 10 weeks challenge, visit http://bit.ly/2gzjRUE