Preparing for ‘the Toughest Foot-Race on Earth

Lieutenant Commander Andre Milne Royal Navy who is on an exchange NATO appointment in Portugal, completed a full marathon (42 km.) at the NATO Oeiras base, as a part of his training schedule for the Marathon Des Sables (MDS) in the Sahara Desert.

Andre will participate in the gruelling MDS in April alongside fellow Naval Officer, Lt Cdr James Birchall who is currently serving as a pilot on 845 Naval Air Squadron at the Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton in Somerset.

The race described as ‘the toughest foot-race on earth’ will be extremely challenging as the only support will be 9 litres of water for each day of the 6 stage event, which means they must be self-sufficient and carry all his equipment whilst running a marathon. At least 30% of participants will not finish the race!

“We hope to raise £12000 for the Children's Trust which is a national charity providing a range of specialist services to children and young people with multiple disabilities, complex health needs and acquired brain injury. The Trust also provides expert nursing care, including palliative care, in the form of short breaks or as continuing care for children whose needs are too complex for them to be looked after at home.” said Lt Cdr Milne, “as we are both family men and avid sportsmen we thought it would be great to compete in this event whilst at the same time raise money for a tremendous cause.”

Commander of the Portuguese Base in Lisbon, Lieutenant General Philippe Stoltz, Deputy Commander Lieutenant General Manuel Mestre and Chief of Staff Rear-Admiral Pires da Cunha supported Lt Cdr Milne by attending the start with many other staff members and the Milne’s Family. Andre raised 500 euros from his run and was very happy with his overall performance.

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