Amy Packer
AS he crosses the finishing line of the Athens Marathon this Sunday, 30-year-old Nick Butters will have a world record to celebrate.
He will have become the first person to have run a marathon in all 196 countries on Earth.
That’s some achievement for a man whose headteacher once wrote, “Nick is not a natural runner” in his school report.
“He has since eaten his words,” laughs Nick. “And I do think I am a natural runner.”
He’s certainly proved his point, having spent almost two years running in war zones and areas of political unrest, in the extreme climates of the Sahara Desert and Antarctica – and literally everywhere in between.
Nick’s challenge was inspired by his friend
Kevin Webber, who has terminal prostate cancer. Diagnosed in 2014, aged
49, and given just two years to live, Kevin has beaten the odds and will be running alongside Nick as he completes his challenge on Sunday.
“I told him he had to live if I was going to do this and he has,” says Nick. “I’m blown away he’s still with us and still racing. I really hope he’s going to be the miracle, that he never goes.”
You could be forgiven for assuming that having run more than 5,000 miles on his quest, Nick would be in peak condition – but he believes he is in worse shape now than when he set off on the challenge in January 2018.
“I honestly think my fitness has got worse, because before I started I was doing big ultra-runner training – thinking about my diet and I was really fit,” says Nick, who grew up in Dorset but after so long on the road, now says he doesn’t really live anywhere.
“I’ve been living off rice and chicken and not really getting enough nutrients or sleeping enough. I’m running in 40 degree heat and losing weight – all the ingredients for unhealthy living.”
Speed isn’t a motivator any more either. “I’ve done nearly 600 marathons in my life and a lot of them have been
ROAD TO A WORLD FIRST Nick in Guatemala
races,” Nick explains. “I used to run to get fit, then to beat my time. Now I just run to enjoy it.
“In far flung places I want to stop and speak to locals or have photos with kids. The speed would take the fun out of it, so my times range from three to seven hours.
“One of my slowest runs of the trip was with some of my best friends. We would stop to have drinks and an ice cream, walk and chat.
“I can’t race every marathon as my legs would be incredibly sore and it wouldn’t be enjoyable.” There have also been plenty of health setbacks to stop Nick achieving personal bests along the way. “I’ve had six bouts of food poisoning during the challenge. In Bangladesh I
Nick in Chile