In a moment of madness, Rich Potter decided to compete in the Marathon des Sables Legendary 2026. This is the 40th anniversary and will once again be held in the Sahara Desert in Morocco. It’s labelled the toughest foot race on earth with daily temperatures reaching over 45 degrees Celsius. It’s fully self sufficient meaning I must carry all of my own equipment (except water) and I will complete a smidge over 275km km in 6 days. It takes place from 3 April 2026 to 13 April 2026.

I am a below the knee amputee and I’m no stranger to big challenges but people keep saying why MDS? Well, this is what happens when you have a midlife crisis and can’t afford the Porsche. I will battle some of the harshest terrain on earth, sandstorms, various varieties of spiders, snakes and scorpions and contend with sharing a bivouac with 9 other runners for 10 days in the desert. It’s going to be brutal but it’s for a very worthy cause.

Rich: “I’ve been fortunate/unfortunate enough to deal with a lot of military charities in my time as an amputee and I’ve never experienced anyone as forward leaning as BLESMA. They’ve been there for my family and I from the day of my amputation and will be there for us until my dying day. Losing a career in the military is tough, losing a limb on top of that can be catastrophic without the right support network in place. I’m lucky to have an incredible wife and son, great friends and colleagues. I know that many don’t and thats when BLESMA truly shine. There’s been too many veteran suicides; by allowing BLESMA to do their incredible work, hopefully they can be halted. When I got back from my world record expedition in Bhutan, my brain would not let me relax and I got bored of people asking me what my next challenge would be, so I just went ahead and chose one of the most horrific challenges out there.

Rich Potter - Instagram @Amputee_rich

A social thanks to my principal sponsors Ethnocare Canada and Pymm & Co and Broadland Consultants.

Some info on BLESMA below;

Blesma, The Limbless Veterans, is dedicated to assisting serving and ex-Service men and women who have suffered life-changing limb loss or the loss of use of a limb, an eye or loss of sight. We support these men and women in their communities throughout the UK and overseas.

We work tirelessly for our Members when the conflicts that have affected their lives are no longer a focal point in the nation’s media. Since 1932, we have been the only national Service charity that supports limbless veterans for the duration of their lives. Our Members range from the youngest amputee veterans to those who fought in WWII, some having lived with limb loss for more than half a century. Modern medicine transforms the physical injury, but it is a complicated process to treat the emotional trauma and related lifelong health problems.

Blesma provides a network where Members not only enjoy support from our professional Welfare Team, but where they have the opportunity to engage with others who have similar injuries and backgrounds to themselves, building an important fellowship with each other to overcome everyday battles.