‘Warriors’ run, crawl and jump for mental health

Charity challenge tests the fitness, strength and stamina of those taking part

More than 70 “warriors” ran, crawled and jumped their way through an assault course at Dundee University to help raise funds for mental health support.

The Brave Runner event, organised by the Sports Union and the Institute for Sport and Exercise at the university, aimed to test the fitness, strength, stamina, mental grit and teamwork of all taking part.

Proceeds will go to the on-campus Healthy Body, Healthy Mind referral service.

Runners were encouraged to turn up in fancy dress centred on the theme “warrior”.

Alexandra Scott, Sports Union president, organised the event with university gym manager Nik Long.

Alexandra said: “We first organised this challenge four years ago, when I was in my first year. It was a success, so we thought we would run it again.

“We are doing the Healthy Body, Healthy Mind award as part of NUS Scotland , which aims to engage people in sport.

“The Brave Runner is a challenge, but it’s also fun and anyone can take part, whether they’ve been involved in sport before or not.”

In total there were 10 obstacles, arranged and supervised by the University Officers’ Training Corps, a leadership training unit operated by the armed forces.

Participants worked in teams of five to perform a number of tasks including jumping over tyres, carrying heavy tubs of water, crawling under nets and sliding down a makeshift water slide.

They also had to go through various drills, such as shuttle running, burpees and jumping up and down from a low fence.

Nik added: “It has been proven that regular exercise can help mitigate the effects of poor mental health and can kickstart a more balanced wellbeing.

“All donations will go towards our Healthy Body, Healthy Mind referral service, which is available for students who can benefit from exercise to help balance out the adverse effects of modern life.”

The entire challenge took around an hour to complete.

Nadia dressed as a Ghostbuster.

Pictures: Mhairi Edwards. Left: Team Sweet and Sour go down the finish slide. Top: some of the participants warming up. Above: Jaime Benjamin, Bethany Starkey, Charlotte Starkey and Rachael Smith get into the spirit of the event.