A team from Norfolk's farming community is taking the plunge for a gruelling charity swim across Lake Geneva to raise money for brain tumour research.

A farm shop owner, farm director and land agent are among the five-strong team competing in the Maillot d’Or race, spanning the 70km length of the picturesque lake on the border between Switzerland and France.

They are raising money for the Brian Cross Memorial Trust, founded in memory of the well-known Dereham businessman and former town mayor who died from a rare brain cancer in 2006, at the age of 62.

One of the swimmers is Alex Begg, who runs a farm at Gressenhall with his wife Rosie, who is Mr Cross' daughter.

He said the trust has generated more than £1m since it was formed, while also raising awareness of brain tumours which still attract a "very low proportion" of cancer research funding.

"Brian was very well respected across Norfolk and one of his amazing legacies is providing great motivation to raise awareness and funds to give other families in a similar position hope and optimism that there might be better cures in the near future," he said.

Mr Begg raised £25,000 for the charity by swimming the English Channel in 2019 - but he said Lake Geneva presented a different challenge.

"It is a significant undertaking for anybody," he said. "The length of Lake Geneva makes it one of the longest and most demanding swims, and it is fresh water so you have less buoyancy and that adds to the level of difficulty.

"And you have the challenge of swimming at night, so it is both a physical and a mental challenge - but the scenery makes it a beautiful place to take on such a challenge."

The five-strong team will swim for an hour each before handing over to a team-mate in the relay. In total, they expect it to take about 24 hours.

Another team member is Sam Steggles, owner of the Goat Shed farm shop at Honingham, who will swim despite breaking his big toe while dancing at his 40th birthday party.

"It has curtailed my training, but it won't hamper me in the race," he said. "We are very determined to complete the race and a broken toe is nothing compared to a brain tumour.

"The bit I am not looking forward to is swimming at night, but I am confident that we will succeed and raise a lot of money for a worthy charity."

The Norfolk contingent also includes land agent Russell de Beer, a Norwich-based director with Strutt and Parker.

The team is completed by two Londoners - Jonny East, who works for a biotech company, and George Emkes, a software product manager who is also a water polo player.

The race starts on August 13. To donate, go to justgiving.com/team/BCMTGenevaSwim.