Now in its sixth year, Help for Heroes’ partnership with Tough Mudder has raised more than £2.8 million. Thanks to the efforts of Mudders across the country, money raised has gone towards Help for Heroes’ Sports Recovery programme, ensuring wounded, inured and sick Servicemen and women can discover the power of grassroots sport in their recovery.
James Brown is one of Help for Heroes’ many amazing fundraisers who regularly takes part in Tough Mudder events. James will be turning 57 this year. In 2013 he had a hole in his heart closed, meaning up to that point he had been running on an inhalation capacity of just 85%. He’s now more driven and determined to become fitter than he has ever been. Thanks to fundraisers like James, thousands have benefited from Sports Recovery activities. This is his story.
Meet Help For Heroes Fundraiser James Brown
James was introduced to Help for Heroes Ambassadors Mark Holloway and Scott Brown, who inspired him to get involved with the charity. Members of his family in the army have suffered with depression and feelings of ‘not fitting in’ with society, and James has now been fundraising for over three years to help support people in similar situations. He now competes in all UK Tough Mudders – an incredible 52 so far, completing an average of four laps per event.
He won 1st place in his age category for both the Europe’s Toughest Mudder and World’s Toughest Mudder events. He loves the camaraderie, but what overrides this is the sense of achievement. The pull-factor that makes James return to Tough Mudder every year is that, for him, it’s a personal challenge. A lot of people are inspired by that, and it drives them to train even harder than before ahead of the event.
Training for Tough Mudder
James requires a training programme that pushes him beyond his boundaries. He trains with one of the winners of the UK Ninja Warrior programme, Johnny Urszuly, who is also fundraising for Help for Heroes this year. They do a lot of ring work, upper-body work, honing of technique, and confidence work. To keep training interesting, they set themselves challenges every week.
Not content with being merely a driven and talented individual, James is currently studying for a Level 5 Sports Massage course. He said of his achievements, “I firmly believe that it’s never too late to change; you shouldn’t be afraid to fail, only afraid not to try.”
If you would like to take on an extra challenge, and have been inspired by James’ attitude to life, why not try fundraising for Help for Heroes? You could well change someone’s life for the better.
