Andrew Keast returned home on Tuesday, 7 Feb., after running seven marathons in seven days on seven continents to raise funds for the Cayman Islands Breast Cancer Foundation.
From the desert city of Dubai to the snowy vistas of Antarctica, Keast, 47, completed each of the seven 26.2-mile races under the Cayman Islands flag and even placed second in four of the marathons.
“It was quite competitive,” Keast, a former winner of Cayman’s Off the Beaten Track ultra-marathon told the Compass.
“The lead guy was the US trail champion, so he was pretty far out ahead, but I was very happy with second in most of the marathons.”
The World Marathon Challenge featured races in Antarctica; Cape Town; Perth; Dubai; Madrid; Fortaleza, Brazil; and Miami against a field of around 40 others. Between each marathon, participants briefly slept on a specially chartered plane.
“Waking up on the plane and thinking you had to do another one was quite tough,” Keast said. “But you get there, and the adrenaline would kick in and each time you would still have a little energy.”
He noted that, while each day posed mental hurdles, he reminded himself of why he started the challenge in the first place.
“It’s for Julie, who is a dear friend,” he said. “She went through breast cancer, and she had amazing support from the Breast Cancer Foundation.
“So, it made sense to do it for them because they took such good care of her. Running a marathon is nothing compared to what these women go through with breast cancer, so it’s not a hard push to raise money for that cause.”
Australian-born Keast, who is now a naturalised Caymanian, raised US$34,183 for the local foundation.
James Bovell, a founding member and board director of the Breast Cancer Foundation, said in a press release that Keast has made a huge impact on the organisation.
“By participating in the World Marathon Challenge, [Keast] enables us to raise additional funds needed to support breast cancer patients and survivors through numerous programs and services,” Bovell said.
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