Seven marathons in Seven consecutive days distributed throughout the planet, three races of 40 kilometers run in just day and a halfcomplete two Ironman In terms of a monthchain marathons non-stop Throughout a week … it sounds for science fiction version fitnessbut they are all real challenges assumed over the last months (or years) by athletes from Spain, in some cases with amateur profile. And almost all share two characteristics, in addition to the physical impact that they entail for them: a great visibility and a solidarity approach.
Those who assume these careers of races often do so to raise funds that then dedicate to medical research, but with each test they are driving a few questions: do these tests make sense, beyond the one who wants to give each athlete? How do they affect your health? Are they just performances?
Kilome -free bar. There are those who demonstrate their solidarity becoming a volunteer collaborator of an NGO, who donates clothes or food and who weers the shoes, goes out (or takes a plane) and is running kilometers as if there were no tomorrow. Examples are a few and, precisely because of the great echo they achieve, a simple search on Google arrives to find them.
In 2020 a Basque set out to run A triathlon per month In a square to get funds for an electric chair, in 2021 another Madrid triathlete He decided to chain Two Iroman in a month to support the fight against cancer already finally 2024 Coach He commented with his plans to complete three times in a row one of the toughest ironman on the planet to, among other things, help “become aware of the true human potential,” in his own words.
Are there more cases? Yes. Those above are just a handful of examples taken from a quick search on Google, but there are more, enough. A Catalan athlete has set out to run seven marathons in a week (about 295 km) to get funds for the ELA and a few days ago a influencer Extreme Sports A fan, Valentí Sanjuan, completed Another test Same amazing: he ran five consecutive marathons on five continents to finance the fight against childhood cancer.
“I ran three marathons in a day and a half almost without sleep. It was hard,” explained to The newspaper After finishing the challenge, which culminated on Saturday in the center of Barcelona.
A similar approach had The challenge than the too influencer Sergio Turull (pitufolow) assumed a few months ago: he went through Spain from top to bottom, from rate to Cap de Creus, in In infarction timewhich demanded that he assume some 65 kilometers a day. In addition to testing your personal abilities, the challenge sought to raise funds to fight childhood cancer.
The case of Verdeliss. If there is a media example and that has achieved repercussion, it is however that of Verdelissbusinesswoman, influencermother of eight children and athlete who recently finished an equally extreme challenge: chanting seven marathons in seven days organized in different corners of the world, from Dubai to Perth, Antarctica and Miami, passing through the Spanish capital.
The test was also accompanied by a message with solidarity dyes: the idea was to give visibility and gather funds to investigate A rare disease.
But … Is money collected? Yes. The challenges give visibility to the causes that will lead and, at least in the most media cases, serve to raise funds. For example, in ‘My grain of sand’ it can be seen that Sanjuan has raised 20,400 euroswell above the 10,000 that had been marked as a goal, and Verdeliss’s challenge would have translated into 35,000 euros For a girl with Menke-Hennekan syndrome. As for Turull, I would have achieved some 58,000 euros.
There are even more striking cases, such as the British corridor Gary McKeeprobably the most extreme of all. In fact he has won the nickname of ‘Marathon Man’. The BBC counts How he managed to raise one million pounds touring a route of 42 kilometers each and every one of the days of 2022, often before joining his work. It was polished 20 pairs of shoes.
The approach was again solidary: money is collection For Macmillian Cancer Support and West Cumbria Hospice At Home and in fact the athlete has received remarkable recognition and the thanks of relatives with cancer.
Solidarity (and something else). The big question is … to what extent are these challenges effective as fundraising campaigns? Do they have more implications? Do they compensate for the impact of the tests on the runners? The undeniable thing is that in cases such as Verdeliss, in which the protagonist is a influencerthe challenge has another consequence: expands clearly Its visibility and media impact, reinforcing an exhibition that is already considerable in networks.
In the case of the Basque athlete, before even the running shoes, It transcended that its marathons would star in a documentary for Movistar Plus. Sanjuan Explain who has recorded another for Prime Video and Turull’s career have also been Video captured. The three add thousands of followers in Instagram either YouTubewhich gives more visibility to your deeds.
The key: money. Another key is the cost that the challenges and funds that collect. Sanjuan explains, for example, that during his last challenge he had to sleep on flights low cost, And he says: “It has cost us the return to the world 2,800 euros.” “He ate what they gave us on the plane and slept in tiny seats.”
In the case of Verdeliss the intercontinental challenge, which implied several flights, was made within the framework of the World Marathon Challengea circuit that demands considerable payment from participants. The mail assures That the Basque has disbursed around 39,000 euros, although she guarantees: “Everything leaves my pocket.”
Between them they gathered more than 50,000 euros for their respective solidarity causes, but it is also true that there are other solidarity actions, such as auctionscollections or Exhibitionsthat gather thousands of euros without the need for titanic sports challenges as a hook. Sometimes even with the involvement of athletes. The AFE Foundation auction, focused on the ELA, raised in 2023 More than 6,000 euros with pieces contributed, among others, by Alcaraz and Valverde.
The other invoice: Physics. If with something the athletes who assume the challenges are paid, it is however with Your bodies and health. Complete a marathon has a cost. One that can shoot if we are dedicated to chaining them, with hardly any rest and in different parts of the planet, with remarkable altitude changes.
Although the risks depend a lot on the health status of the corridor and its preparation, A recent study He calculated that the average mortality is 0.67 per 100,000 people who finish the race. It is not a high rate, but there are experts that The risks point out for The heartthe immune system, dehydration or the possibility of injuries, such as sprains or twist.
WHO establishes what is The minimum exercise That an adult should make, but the question that remains by throwing is … Is there a maximum advisable too? And if so, which one? “I know it’s a savage, don’t do it at home,” Verdeliss herself acknowledged After finishing its marathons on different continents.
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Images | Junedc (Flickr) and Joan Ggk (Flickr)
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