A former Royal Marine has completed “the world’s longest triathlon”, which he started in the UK eight months ago and finished at the summit of Mount Everest.
Mitch Hutchcraft, from Cambridgeshire, travelled more than 13,000km (8,077 miles) in 240 days by swimming, cycling, running and trekking before reaching the world’s highest peak on Sunday.
Setting off from Dover on 14 September last year, the 32-year-old swam 34km across the Channel, cycled 11,929km from France to India, ran 900km from India to Kathmandu in Nepal, and then trekked 365km to reach Everest base camp on 16 April.
He reached the summit of the 8,849-metre (29,032ft) mountain at 7.20am Nepalese time on Sunday in what he described as “the longest climb of Everest in history”.
“It was more magical than I could have ever dreamed it would be,” Hutchcraft said. “Although I lost my dad 11 years ago, he was with me every step of the way. It’s been tough. Really tough. The most difficult thing I’ve ever done. But I couldn’t be happier and more proud of finishing this epic adventure.”
He thanked his guide Gelje Sherpa, a renowned Nepalese climber, and the production team who have been documenting his adventure, called Project Limitless. “It’s been a long, hard, amazing road to get here, but we finally did it,” he said in a post on Instagram.
Hutchcraft joined the Royal Marines aged 21, after his father died, and served for six years, leaving in 2021.
He hopes to raise £500,000 for SavSim, a London-based wildlife conservation charity that uses animals and nature to provide mental health support to military veterans.
Before he left base camp on Friday, he posted on social media saying the climb was worth the risks.
“It’s been a dream of mine since I was eight years old to climb Everest, ever since I saw it in a book,” he wrote. “Never in a million years did I think this would be how I’d get here. Years of preparation, 8 long months of physical endurance, swimming across the Channel … the hardest day of my life, cycling across 19 countries, running 900km, and following in the footsteps of the first ever climb of Everest to reach base camp. It’s been one hell of a journey.”
He faced many challenges during his journey, including being knocked off his bike by a taxi, chased by wild dogs and held at gunpoint in Serbia.
During his cycle from France to Turkey, he was joined by his three-year-old golden retriever, Buddy, who alternated between running alongside him and being pulled in a cycling carrier, which added 32kg to Hutchcraft’s bike.
Source: theguardian.com
