Hugh’s biography

Hugh was born prematurely in Anglesey in October 1969. But he kicked a little harder, got up and dusted himself down from the playground and tried again, and again. He was, and still is, a man who knows and loves physical and mental exertion.

Hugh attended the Dragon School in Oxford followed by Gordonstoun School (whose motto is “Plus est en vous” (“More is in you”)). He then went to hotel school followed by two years working for an adventure tourism company in New Zealand, returning to London to work in corporate events. He still found time to undertake physical and mental challenges, climbing the three highest peaks in Scotland, England and Wales in 24 hours, known as the ‘Three Peaks Challenge’. He summited Mont Blanc, Kilimanjaro, assorted volcanoes in Argentina, and then Aconcagua.

In 2004, Hugh successfully completed the trans-Saharan Marathon des Sables, 6 marathons in 7 days; the toughest foot race in the world.

Next, he built a successful business in event management with his own company specialising in running business conferences, AGM’s, financial roadshows and bespoke sporting events.

By August 2009, Hugh was ready for another challenge, perhaps the biggest of his life: aside from now being married, and the father of three children under the age of four! It was clear that he had the physical aptitude, stamina and mental strength to succeed in endurance challenges. So what next….? At his wife’s family home in Portugal in 2009, he wondered whether he could run home? (some 1300 miles). That led to the challenge of completing 50 marathons in 50 consecutive days from Lisbon to London.

More than 20 running partners joined Hugh on this mammoth achievement and he crossed the finishing line, in London’s Trafalgar Square, at 3pm on Wednesday 21 April 2010. Hugh set out from the start to raise money for Marie Curie Cancer Care. The total raised is over £40,000 and rising. Each of the 50 marathons, on 50 days, was a different journey, a different story, and a unique occasion. For every single energy-sapping footfall, each joule of energy was converted and amplified for positive and reaching effect.