Jogger sustained life-changing injuries.

A HONITON teenager left a road runner with an “unpleasant and life-changing” injury after an unprovoked assault, a court heard.

Shaun Boyd, 19, of Phillips Square, broke victim Mike Rose’s nose as the 55-year-old jogged through the town-centre.

Boyd was jailed for 12 months when he appeared at Exeter Crown Court last Wednesday.

The teen pleaded had guilty to a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Prosecutor David Gittins told the court how ‘serious’ road-runner Mr Rose, also a champion cyclist, set off on his daily four-mile training run as normal on October 13 last year.

“At around 7pm, Mr Rose noticed three youths shouting at him as he passed Budgens in High Street.

“As he turned into Mill Street, Boyd ran up behind him and kicked him on his backside and tried to hit him in the face,” said Mr Gittins.

“Mr Rose avoided the blow, and tripped the defendant up, but was then attacked by two men.

Boyd struck Mr Rose on the nose.”

He added, Mr Rose suffered a displaced septum - which had an “adverse affect” on his running training.

The court heard how witnesses who watched the assault from a nearby window were “disgusted” by Boyd’s actions.

Rebecca Bradberry, Boyd’s defence counsel, said: “He’s been very upset at the distress he’s caused to Mr Rose.”

She added Boyd had very little recollection of the incident, and had a “very serious” alcohol problem.

Passing sentence, Recorder Nicholas Hall said: “You gratuitously assaulted a 55-year-old jogger.

“There is no sensible mitigation that can be applied to the offence. It resulted in an unpleasant and life-changing injury to your victim.”

Boyd was sentenced to a total of six-and-a-half years in a young offender’s institution.

He received a five-and-a-half-year term for an unrelated offence of causing grievous bodily harm.