Runner 'exhausted' after finishing 40 marathons in 40 countries

A former student has said he was inspired to run 40 marathons in 40 countries as a way of seeing Europe after finishing university.

Angus Read from Warwick started four months ago in 30C (86F) heat and ended in hospital with exhaustion when he completed his challenge on Saturday, in London.

The challenge has taken him from the sunshine of Monaco to sub-zero temperatures in Iceland, raising more than £11,000 for Cancer Research UK in the process, in memory of his aunt, who died in 2014.

He admitted being a bit under-prepared when he started, but said he had thrown himself "in the deep end" and "figured it out" as he went along.

After completing a law degree at Leeds University, Mr Read said he was looking to do something before going into full-time work.

"Originally I just wanted to do some solo travelling around eastern Europe," he said, but then concocted a challenge to give himself "something to aim for when I was travelling".

Previously, he said he had run two marathons in Leeds but had underestimated how how hard they would be.

"I hadn't trained or dieted as well as I should have so I was a bit undercooked," he said.

However, over the course of his 40 marathons he said his body had quickly adapted.

Mr Read said the challenge had seen him experience new countries and meet new people.

"I've been to so many countries that I wasn't planning on going to originally, which is cool - such as Tallin in Estonia, that was a beautiful city," he said.

"I really enjoyed Sarajevo in Bosnia Herzegovina. My favourite run was Nice to Monaco along the south coast of France - that was stunning - a really sunny day, beautiful coastline."

He was on own and staying in hostels and said it was tricky to factor in social times to meet people as well as explore the countries, since he was only in them for two or three days at a time.

Mr Read ran a marathon on average every three days and said while some were on planned circuits, others were made up as they went along, using the Strava app.

By the end, he said his left knee was causing him "quite a lot of pain" and he had "loads of different niggles and tweaks".

Exhaustion was also a big problem, because of the lack of recovery time.

"When I finished the challenge, my body kind of shut down in a way," he said.

"I had to go to A&E and I got diagnosed with severe fatigue slash exhaustion really from the whole trip."

He said he now planned to take a few months off, relax and recuperate, before going to look for work in the new year.

Mr Read's final marathon ended at Cliff Park in Stoke Newington, London on Saturday.

Five friends accompanied him on the run and he said that "really helped me push through".

Crossing that final finishing line he said left him with a mixture of emotions.

"Obviously I was really happy and proud of what I've achieved but at the same time just getting over that line was a bit of a mission yesterday so I was... exhausted as you can imagine," he said.

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