In the dark before dawn, Sean Bell hobbles from bed, jimmies his sore, swollen feet into shoes a size too big, and starts to jog. Exhaustion makes it difficult to fathom how far he has to go. Instead, he focuses on running until sunrise, when he will take a break to eat .
The 26-year-old will run 84 kilometres today, as he has for the last 115 days and will continue to do for the next 60 days until he has finished what he set out to do: become the fastest person to run the 14,272 kilometres around Australia. Sean Bell knows better than most the toll extreme distances does to a person’s body. The nails from all 10 of his toes are long gone, nausea is constant, and his body is mutinous: regularly projectile vomiting and streaming blood from his nose.
“It’s a huge shock to the body every day,” says the Melburnian. “Your body is rebelling and asking you to stop and you’re not. Your mind has to tell your body to find a way.
” An extremely popular challenge In the name of the lost dreams of two beloved friends, who died unexpectedly, Bell decided to try and support the dreams of others. Through his run, he is aiming to raise $1.4 million for the Make-A-Wish foundation .
Through his run, Bell is aiming to raise $1.4 million for the Make-A-Wish foundation. Extreme charity challenges have become increasingly popular, says Sally Shepherd, the executive manager of Membership and Marketing at the Fundraising Institute Australia.
This type of fundraising isn’t limited by th.
