30 September 2021
By Tom Collins
tom@TheCork.ie
Robert Clarke from Midleton is set to compete in the Marathon des Sables, a gruelling endurance footrace, which involves running 6 ultra-marathons in less than 1 week in the Sahara desert, starting on Sunday 3rd October. He will face harsh terrain in an environment where midday temperatures can reach 50 degrees Celsius on a course that is set to challenge his mental and physical strength and put all of his training to the test. Dubbed the toughest race in the world, he will be 1 of 1200 competitors aiming to run over 254kms in 6 days, carrying everything they need on their back and sleeping 8 to a tent each night in a bivouac village.
Robert is also using his unique adventure as a platform to create awareness and fundraise for his local Cork charity, SHARE.
Excited about the race, as he makes the final preparations for his flight to Morocco, Clarke is undaunted by the challenge ahead,
“It should be mad but good craic I hope. My resilience and conditioning training has been tough. I know I will be tested but my focus is to take each day as it comes. I’m travelling light, with food for the week, sleeping bag, cooking gear, water and a couple of essential bits of kit. I will be doing my best to complete the course as a personal goal and to maximise the fundraising for SHARE. I’m delighted with the response so far and thank everyone for their support and encouragement which is already adding a bit of pep to my step.”
Robert has already raised over €2,000 for SHARE. You can show your support for Robert’s SHARE campaign at https://www.gofundme.com/f/6-marathons-6-days
