Adam Acworth successfully completed the 'Marathon des Sables'

Alumnus runs 240km and raises over £11,000 for charity

Exeter alumnus Adam Acworth (Sports Science, 2008) has recently run the 240km ‘Marathon des Sables’ and has raised over £11,000 for the charity Mencap.

Adam, who has already done a full Ironman, two ultra-marathons and two marathons, completed the 6 day 240km race across the Sahara desert. The race saw him running for 6 days straight in 50 degree heat whilst carrying his own food and camping equipment which weighed around 10kg. Despite the challenges that this race presented, Adam managed to finish 128^th out of 1,200 competitors.

He commented on his success saying: “Across the 7 days, I ended up finishing 128 from 1,200 runners in 32h 30m across the 237km course. All in all it's by far the hardest physical challenge I've ever done (it makes an Ironman look easy). It’s hard to describe the pain you go through every day when pushing yourself to the max! The MdS was the most amazing experience and something I'm so pleased I did. It also makes you realise you don't need all the luxury's we take for granted. The simple life was brilliant.”

We spoke to Adam following his race achievement and asked him why he wanted to run such a gruelling race and if he’d ever do anything like it again, he answered: “Because it’s the hardest race on earth and I wanted to do the ultimate challenge, I’m thinking about doing the Artic Ultra next.”

Adam studied Sports Science at the University and has always had a passion for sport, he commented on this love of sport and spoke about where his degree from Exeter has led him: “I’ve always loved sports. After leaving Exeter I did a Masters in Law, worked at IMG with professional tennis players, spent four years in F1 with drivers and brands and in 2014 I founded Santara Group, a talent management agency representing professional athletes, entertainers and sporting icons.”

Date: 24 April 2017