You’d think that after running 26 miles, cycling 100 and then doing a two-mile open water swim that it would be time for a rest. Not so for Hutchinson Thomas Partner, Debbie Richards, who is now planning a five-day trek through the Sahara Desert.
Since getting back into exercise last year, Debbie has been unstoppable. Her hattrick of athletic achievements even saw her enter a new prestigious club; the London Classics Hall of Fame.
To enter the Hall, athletes need to have completed the London Marathon, the Ride London-Surrey 100 Sportive, and a two mile swim of the Serpentine. When all have been achieved, they receive a medal stamped with Et ego Londinium vici – “I too have conquered London”.
The Hall of Fame only opened this year and Debbie is one of the first people in it – Congratulations Debbie!
It’s a particularly impressive achievement as although Debbie had completed the first element of the London Classics trio in 2012 when she run the London Marathon, she had done this with very little training or technique. Afterwards, the combination of a busy job at Hutchinson Thomas and a poor lifestyle saw her fitness slip and her trainers sit unloved in the cupboard.
The death of a fellow Merthyr solicitor made Debbie realise that the pressures of work combined with a poor lifestyle meant she needed to look after herself better. So last year she joined a fitness group, Merthyr Girls Can, and before she knew it was doing a 100 mile bike ride and practising for the Serpentine swim in the River Usk.
At the age of 54 and determined to stay fit for good, Debbie says: “I don’t know how I ever lived the length of life I did without knowing how to look after my body. By the nature of my job I could be at my desk, at court or driving so I just try to get on my feet as much as I can”.
A motivation to us all! Next step for Debbie is the Sahara Desert – stay tuned.