The organizer of the Tough Guy competition, former British military man Billy Wilson, boasts that this test is one of the toughest in the world . And he is right. Year after year, since 1987, some 5,000 men and women meet in the town of Perton, in England, to try to complete the route, of about 15 kilometers .
This includes a cross country march and obstacles of all kinds, which can vary from one edition to another. Among them are sections made up of burning embers , mud pools , barbed wire fences , walls and claustrophobic tunnels, in which cables produce small electric shocks to those who venture into them.
In addition, the test takes place in winter, so the environment is particularly flooded and the waterways can be partly frozen . Under these conditions, hypothermia and dehydration, as well as bruises, abrasions, and cuts are not uncommon. Since Tough Guy was launched, some runners have also suffered dislocations and fractures, but the most serious case occurred in 2000. That year, one of the participants died in hospital as a result of heart failure.
In the 2016 edition, in which 4,500 people from 33 countries participated (of them, 2,800 completed the route) , the British Conor Hancock won, with a mark of 1 hour and 31 minutes. Contributions from participants have gone to a charity that collects and cares for injured or abandoned equines.
Image: Tough Guy (www.toughguy.co.uk)
