A couple are continuing to battle illness and sweltering temperatures on an 11,000 mile cycle ride for charity.

Dr Loretta White, 31, and her husband Craig Pollard have now passed the Equator on their year-long journey from London to Cape Town.

They have raised more than £30,000 for street children in Africa since setting off from the UK last August.

Dr White, a clinical psychologist at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital, said: “We have seen some incredible projects on our trip to date, but also some incredibly sad situations.

“We were at a project called New Generation in Burundi last month and had to wave goodbye to a group of children. They were aged about four and five and went off to sleep on the streets with only a packet of biscuits in their tummies.”

The couple from Waterperry have so far travelled through 22 countries and 7,500 miles, crossing the border into Zambia last week.

In the past few months, they have tackled the mountains in Ethiopia, reached Rwanda during the country’s genocide memorial week, journeyed through the war-torn country of Burundi and cycled through the wilderness of western Tanzania.

They also travelled through Egypt at the height of political unrest in the country and spent 10 days cycling through the Nubian desert in 50C heat.

The journey has been particularly difficult for Dr White, who has suffered bouts of Giardia, an infection of the intestine, and dysentery.

Mr Pollard, a fundraiser in London, said: “The past few months have been extremely difficult but we have been spurred on by the laughter, waves and smiles of strangers.

“We’ve seen some beautiful places, from the thousand hills of Rwanda to the savannah plains of Tanzania. The wildlife has been getting slowly more exotic and we’ve even heard hippos and hyenas outside our tents at night.”

The couple, who are travelling with two friends, set up their own charity to raise money and awareness to help street children in Africa.

They will now journey through Zambia, into Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Swaziland before they finally enter South Africa later this summer.

Dr White said: “People still don’t believe we have cycled all the way to Zambia and especially cannot believe that as a female I have cycled also.

“We have spoken at international schools on our route and it has been nice inspiring the young females in the audience, even though some girls came up especially afterwards just to ask if I was married.”

To find out more about the ride or to donate, visit cycleafrica.org