Latest news with #ultraendurance
National Post
23-07-2025
- Sport
- National Post
Amazfit Announces Ultra Runner Rod Farvard as New Brand Ambassador
Article content Ultra endurance athlete to showcase Amazfit's advanced tracking capabilities on and off the trail Article content MILPITAS, Calif. — Amazfit, a leading global smart wearables brand owned by Zepp Health (NYSE: ZEPP), announced ultra runner Rod Farvard as the newest athlete ambassador. Farvard's approach to endurance racing, a combination of strategic training and smart recovery, mirrors Amazfit's commitment to providing innovative and reliable performance, recovery and sleep tracking technology to everyday and elites athletes alike. Article content Farvard's approach to endurance racing, a combination of strategic training and smart recovery, mirrors Amazfit's commitment to providing innovative and reliable performance, recovery and sleep tracking technology to everyday and elites athletes alike. Article content Farvard set out as a high school cross country runner before transitioning to triathlons and ultimately landing on ultra racing. He has been motivated throughout his career by a DNF result from high school that has helped propel him to complete some of the world's most grueling endurance races on the planet, including the Western States 100, UTMB, and the Moab 240. Farvard has also completed the multi-day challenge on the 214-mile-long John Muir Trail where he set a new Fastest Known Time (supported, north to south) of 3 days, 16 hours, and 2 minutes. Whether running through high-altitude terrain or battling the elements for 100+ miles, he relies on precise data to guide his performance, recovery and nutrition. Farvard will integrate the Amazfit T-Rex 3 smartwatch, Helio Strap and Zepp App ecosystem into his training and race routine, highlighting features such as GPS accuracy, heart rate monitoring, VO₂ Max, sleep and recovery tracking, and more. Article content 'Ultra running is all about managing the variables, pacing, nutrition and recovery, while pushing your body to the limit,' said Farvard. 'With Amazfit, I get reliable tracking capabilities and the necessary tools to optimize race days and recovery. I get real-time feedback that helps me stay in tune with my body no matter how long the race. It's like having a coach on my wrist that doesn't miss a beat.' Article content Farvard joins Italian distance runner Yemaneberhan 'Yeman' Crippa and triathlete Morgan Pearson to Amazfit's growing roster of endurance ambassadors. He will work closely with Amazfit on product testing, athlete-led storytelling, and grassroots community events to help bring the brand's endurance-focused innovations to life. He joins a growing roster of Amazfit ambassadors who represent excellence across running, fitness, and outdoor adventure. Article content According to Scott Shepley, Head of Global Marketing at Amazfit,'Rod brings an unmatched level of authenticity to our performance-driven community. He's not just running 100-mile races, he's relying on data captured from Amazfit products to test the limits, and show what's possible with the right tools and mindset. His insight as an ultra runner will help us continue to innovate for the running and endurance communities.' Article content Explore the full range of Amazfit smart wearables and experience innovation that elevates performance, recovery, and precision at Article content About Amazfit Article content Amazfit, a leading global smart wearable brand focused on health and fitness, is part of Zepp Health (NYSE: ZEPP), a health technology company with its principal office based in Gorinchem, the Netherlands. Zepp Health operates as a distributed organization, with team members and offices across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and other global markets. Article content Offering a wide selection of smartwatches and bands, Amazfit's brand tagline, 'Discover Amazing,' encourages individuals to break barriers, exceed expectations, and find joy in every moment. Amazfit is powered by Zepp Health's proprietary health management platform, which delivers cloud-based, 24/7 actionable insights and guidance to help users achieve their wellness goals. Article content Known for outstanding craftsmanship, Amazfit smartwatches have won numerous design awards, including the iF Design Award and the Red Dot Design Award. Launched in 2015, Amazfit is embraced by millions of users, with products available in over 90 countries across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC regions. For more information, visit Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
Telegraph
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
How breastfeeding mum Stephanie Case won a 100km race
When she was photographed breastfeeding her six-month-old daughter 80 kilometres into an ultra-endurance race while wolfing down some watermelon, little did Stephanie Case know she was about to go viral. The extraordinary image, taken before she was crowned an unexpected winner of the 100km Ultra-Trail Snowdonia two months ago, crystallised the challenges faced by multitasking mums everywhere – but Case thought nothing of it. 'It was quite a normal moment for me,' Case, a Canadian based in Chamonix who has competed in ultra-endurance events for two decades, tells Telegraph Sport. 'Even in 2025, we still have these ideas in our head about what a new mum should look like and what a new mum should be doing. Having this photo of me in the middle of a race, pursuing my passion, stuffing some watermelon into my mouth while also holding my baby, showed me being an athlete and a mum at the same time in a way that wasn't in conflict.' After three years away from the ultra-endurance scene – during which she had two miscarriages and several rounds of IVF – it was Case's first race postpartum. The 42-year-old competes in endurance races as a way to manage the stress from her demanding job as a successful human rights lawyer; Case has worked in the Middle East and her charity, Free to Run, aims to empower young women and girls who live in war zones. Having lost her protected ranking, meaning she had to start 30 minutes after the elite competitors, she had no expectations. But when organisers checked her chip time of 16 hours 53 minutes and 22 seconds, she was declared an unlikely winner of the female event in Eryri National Park by more than four minutes. 'I had to go back and cross the finish line again so that they could put up the tape for me to run through,' laughs Case, who started behind 'hundreds' of runners.
BBC News
27-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Student set to run more than 500km in Peak District
A PhD student plans take on a "nuts challenge" to raise money for charity inspired by health challenges faced by his friend's Stennett, who is also a teaching assistant at Loughborough University, intends to complete a 348-mile (560km) run to the top of the hills throughout the Peak District in six days to raise funds for Kidney Research 30-year-old said he was doing the challenge in support of his friend Sam Viravong and Sam's mum Manoly who was awaiting her second kidney well as the distance, the challenge - set to kick off on 7 July - would also see Mr Stennett climb 4,300ft (1,300m). Mr Stennett said: "It's unlike anything I've done before, I've done multi-day ultra endurance challenges before, but this is by far the biggest one I've ever done."I know it's going to be difficult, but I think it will be much more of a psychological challenge than a physical one."He added that he came up with the idea of the challenge when he was having a "mental health dip" a few years ago and decided he needed a "project" to take on."I've always been a runner so I wanted to commit some time and effort to a running-related thing and came up with this idea. In the process, I thought 'this is a bit of a nuts challenge'." Mr Stennett has decided to raise money for Kidney Research UK as his friend Sam's mum, Malony, has an autoimmune condition which meant she had a kidney transplant when the pair were Viravong - who is planning on being a kidney donor - told the BBC it was "really heartwarming" that Richard has decided to fundraise for Kidney Research in the said: "It means the world, first off the basis that there was no expectation for anybody to do anything for me, my mum and our family."Especially something of this magnitude for him to want to dedicate it and raise money for Kidney Research UK, thinking of my mum's kidney disease and struggle at the moment.""Who has a friend like that, it's hard to put it into words."Lucy Sreeves, executive director of Kidney Research UK, said the challenge was "extraordinary" in scale."He's taking on this huge physical feat in support of a friend's family, and in doing so, he's helping to raise awareness of a disease that affects millions," she said."Kidney disease is often invisible, but its impact is devastating. We're incredibly grateful to Richard for shining a light on the need for research and for inspiring others to take action."
Forbes
18-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Resilience Is Not A Birthright
Getty - Resilience I don't know about you, but I tend to believe that the term "resilience" has become misplaced. It's tossed around as though it's an innate trait, something leaders are either born with or somehow earn through adversity. But author Mandy Gill disagrees. In her new book, Reset with Resilience: A Guide to Greatness When Your Goals Go Sideways, she makes it plain: resilience is not a birthright. It is learned, and for most people—especially in the modern workplace—it has gone untrained for too long. Gill isn't theorizing from the sidelines. She's built her credibility the hard way: as a broadcaster, wellness tech entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and ultra-endurance athlete. Over the last three years alone, she has run over 6,000 miles and climbed nearly one million feet of elevation. But it's not her stamina that matters. For Gill, it's her strategic honesty about what derails progress, both personally and professionally. In most workplaces, goals are sacrosanct. There are annual performance objectives, quarterly KPIs, and stretch targets, and a good portion of the time, they are all dressed up as inspiration. But the hidden truth is that almost no one is trained to navigate what happens when things fall apart. Gill deliberately avoided writing a book that celebrates goal setting. Instead, she wrote a book about what happens when goals go sideways. 'When things start to go sideways, we don't talk about it,' Gill told me. 'If I had quit everything that went off track in my life, I wouldn't be here today. But there are ways to get back on course, and sometimes, it's not the original course, but it's somewhere close, or even better.' That pragmatism is what defines her framework. The book unfolds in three parts: It's refreshingly devoid of cliché. There are no hollow calls to bounce back. Instead, there is an insistence on planning, structure, and situational awareness. She frames this as 'resistance,' which is the moment you feel something is off but plow ahead anyway. For Gill, resilience begins when you acknowledge that resistance instead of muscling through it. Gill's thinking on resilience is rooted in practice. Her company's wellness app, Hooked on Healthy Habits, gave her access to one of the largest private data sets on human behavioral triggers. Among the most important findings was the role of distraction in sabotaging progress. She distilled her coaching into a deceptively simple model: Catch it. Check it. Change it. 'It sounds basic,' she admitted, 'but that three-step idea changed more lives than I ever expected. Because people could actually do it. They caught themselves in the act of veering off track. And they learned to check the pattern and then make a conscious choice.' In her survey of over 1,000 users, 74% admitted that at least one distraction derailed their progress daily for a month. That aligns with BetterUp's findings: employees with higher resilience are 31% more productive and experience far lower burnout compared to less resilient counterparts. Gill's point isn't just about noise, it's about agency. Resilience does not require superhuman focus. It doesn't mean you have to walk through fire. It requires self-awareness, a structured plan, and the discipline to follow through when motivation evaporates. 'Proper planning beats poor performance,' she said, invoking the mantra she uses with teams. Her ultramarathon training follows the same principle. 'There is no winging it. You break it down, reverse-engineer it, and hold yourself accountable.' Gill described a unique moment in both our lives in 2022, when, as emcee, she welcomed me to a keynote stage just hours after completing a 62-mile race with over 20,000 feet of vertical gain. The point wasn't the race. It was the preparation. She had mapped out every detail of the week—nutrition, recovery, schedule—so she could deliver on stage, as a host and moderator, the next morning. It wasn't motivational. It was operational. Again, catch it, check it, change it. Mandy Gill One of the most critical points Gill raises is that resilience isn't purely individual. Without structural support—mentorship, culture, clarity—even the most disciplined employees will falter. Research from the Resilience Institute finds that structured resilience programs deliver an average 4:1 return on investment. For every $1 spent, organizations recoup $4 in improved productivity, reduced turnover, and lower burnout. Gill brought up a story about a construction firm in Toronto where 30-year veterans were retiring en masse, with no mentorship protocols in place. 'If that wisdom doesn't get passed down,' she said, 'the whole culture goes with them.' Gill advocates for strategic mentorship not merely as a side benefit but as a safeguard for resilience. When institutional memory fades without proper transfer, the outcome is entropy. Young professionals are left to reconstruct knowledge that could have been preserved if only someone had the time or courage to speak up and share it. 'If you can't get a mentor, research them,' she added. 'Go deep. Friday night, spend the time and look them up. Learn from them even if they're not available to you in person.' The risk of losing wisdom—especially in an age where knowledge work is increasingly fragmented—is a direct hit to team resilience. We are not designed to operate in silos, nor should we expect people to develop resilience in isolation. Resilience does not have to be an overcomplicated act of leadership. Nor should you assume it to be an overblown ideology for the weak. It is, as Gill points out, a learned skill that just might be a hidden superpower. \ Watch the full interview with Mandy Gill and Dan Pontefract on the Leadership NOW program below, or listen to it on your favorite podcast.
The National
08-06-2025
- The National
How one man and his dog completed epic Everest trek by land, sea and bicycle
A former British soldier who swam, biked and trekked from the UK to Mount Everest said the challenge was life-changing, and that he now hopes to launch a career as a motivational speaker in Dubai. Mitch Hutchcraft completed the 13,000km journey on May 11 after 240 days of adventure. He was accompanied part of the way by his dog Buddy, who joined him in France and travelled with him, towed behind his bike in a trailer, for 2,000km, to Budapest. He has now recovered from the ultra-endurance challenge and hopes to inspire business leaders and charitable fundraisers to pursue their own dreams and goals. 'I left the Royal Marines in 2021, and then instantly got roped into rowing across the Atlantic – that's where I had the idea for this trip,' he told The National. 'I always wanted to climb Everest from sea level, to go from zero to the top of the world is something I always wanted to do. I had always wanted to swim the Channel as well, so it's been a big dream.' The route led him through the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, Oman, the UAE and Kuwait – where a kind-hearted friend provided a vehicle from which a film crew could record his exploits. 'I remember having like a lightbulb moment while I was rowing across the Atlantic, thinking, if I just link the middle bit, it becomes a triathlon, as I've always wanted to cycle across the world too,' he said. 'I thought if I swim the Channel, then I can cycle across the world, two continents, 18 countries, all the way to India, and then I can run and hike 1,200km from India to Everest, and then if I try and climb it I could achieve my dream.' Mr Hutchcraft set off from Dover on September 14 to undertake the first leg of his trip, a 34km open-water sea swim across the English Channel. Gulf leg On arrival at the beaches of northern France a few hours later, he allowed himself time to refuel and rest before jumping on his bike to begin a gruelling cycle from France to India, which took in the UAE. 'I cycled through the entire Middle East – Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi, UAE, Oman – and spent time in Dubai,' he said. 'I've got a really strong connection with the Middle East and the UAE. 'My friend from Kuwait gave me his truck for the entire way for the TV crew from the Kuwait-Iraq border all the way to Oman, so we had it through Saudi all the way through to the UAE.' When that 11,929km leg was done and dusted, it was time to run the 900km journey from India to Nepal, and the foothills of the Himalayas. That leg alone would have tested many, but then it was time for a 365km trek towards Everest base camp, which he reached on April 16. After a few weeks of acclimatisation he began his climb to the summit towards the world's highest peak, reaching the 8,849m summit at around 7.20am local time on Sunday, May 11. The 32-year-old joined the military after the death of his father 13 years ago, and was inspired to take on the longest climb to Everest in history to raise money for his military colleagues. Motivation and inspiration for others Mr Hutchcraft hopes to raise more than Dh2.5 million for SavSim, a UK wildlife conservation charity that uses animals to support military veterans with their mental health. 'I was doing this because of the love for adventure and always wanting to push myself further,' said Mr Hutchcraft. 'My dad died when I was 19, so making him proud, and making my family proud, has always been a big one for me. 'I've had so many positive messages from people, and it's become an opportunity to prove that you haven't got to be superman or superwoman to achieve your wildest dreams. I'm a very bad cyclist, I'm a very bad runner. I've had two knee surgeries. 'I wasn't even meant to be able to join the Royal Marines, which I was in for six years, so it's proof that these challenges are 99 per cent mindset. The only person that knows the definition of possible is yourself. And if you believe anything is possible you can do anything.'
