MAURO PROSPERI: A REAL SURVIVOR

Mauro Prosperi was 39 years old when he took part in the 1994 Marathon des Sables. The Marathon des Sables is an annual 250-kilometre race through the Sahara Desert, and it takes about six days to complete.

Today, the Marathon des Sables usually has about 1,300 participants, but when Prosperi signed up he was one of only 80 participants. He found himself running alone in the desert for much of the time. Prosperi said he was “impressed” by the landscape in Morocco, and by day four of the race, he was making good progress. He was in fourth place. But his luck changed when he came across a violent 8-hour sand storm.

“The sand whipped my face - it was like a storm of needles,” he told BBC World Service in an interview. “I was blinded, I couldn’t breathe. I understood for the first time how powerful a sandstorm could be.”
He was suddenly lost and alone. “I wasn’t worried because I was sure that sooner or later I’d meet someone.” “Who knows how many others are in the same situation? As soon as I see someone we can team up and get to the finish together,” he thought. “That was my plan, but unfortunately it didn’t work out.”

For the next 10 days, he would have to fight to survive in the desert using only a knife, a compass, a sleeping bag and some food in his backpack. On the second day, he saw a helicopter but the pilot didn’t see him. On the third day, he saw a plane but it didn’t spot him. He thought it was his last chance, and he became very depressed.
When he was found after 10 days, he had lost 16 kg. His eyes and liver had been damaged from the heat and sand. He couldn’t eat anything other than soup or liquids for months. It took him almost two years to recover.