Last year, former soldier, Darren Hardy, undertook 10 long distance triathlons in 10 days to raise funds for military veterans. A new documentary about the ‘Perseverance challenge’ is launching on Endurance Sports TV (ESTV), and airs on January 10th, 2021.
Thanks to support from UK bike brand Ribble, the documentary is free to watch on the ESTV channel.
“It’s a privilege to have such an inspirational story on Endurance Sports TV,” says Peter Tomlinson, founder of the online sports channel. “Darren took on one of the most epic challenges we’ve heard about, and to see first-hand the mental and physical battle that comes with an adventure like this is humbling.”
The documentary highlights how gruelling the challenge was, where on day one and after his swim in The Quays, Surrey, Darren came out of the water saying, “I’m finding it hard to talk now because my lips are frozen.”
As the first day unfolds, yet more doubt over the challenge emerges shedding a question mark over the whole adventure. The documentary following Darren, his family and support team as they battle through weather, injury, COVID, and unexpected changes to plans to reach London and complete the epic ten-day endurance challenge.
“I’ve pushed myself to my physical limits before, but this challenge was up there as the toughest,” says Darren Hardy. “It was a case of gritting my teeth and enduring mile upon mile of pain – and then getting up and doing it all again the next day. However, no matter how tough it got, I was going to make it to the end – no matter what – and the feeling of completing the challenge was incredible.
“Pushing myself physically also helps my mental wellbeing, so I want to motivate others to do the same so they can feel the benefits for themselves. If I can help just one person then I have achieved a small goal.”
Finishing his challenge at the London Eye, in the end Daren recorded a massive 28km of swimming, 1262km of cycling and 255km of running over the ten days; the equivalent of 6.8 IRONMAN events, raising over £17,000 for charity to date, and inspiring millions of others around the world. Darren’s has raised money for Help For Heroes via his giving page at www.justgiving.com/darren-hardy7
“Darren’s story is one that needs to be shared and we are proud to be working with Ribble Cycles to make this documentary free for anyone to watch,” added Peter Tomlinson from ESTV.
Andy Smallwood, CEO Ribble at Cycles, added “This documentary shows how an individual with drive, determination and passion can overcome adversity and achieve greatness and inspire all of us at the same time. It’s a great insight into one of Darren’s toughest challenges.”
As part of Ribble Cycles’ partnership with Endurance Sports TV and the Perseverance documentary, one lucky viewer will also have the chance to win a new Ribble Endurance AL Disc bike – with additional prizes from Zone3 and Resilient Nutrition – details for how to win can be found on Instagram via @endurancesportstv.
www.endurancesports.tv
www.ribblecycles.co.uk
