Morpeth man completes epic triathlon event between London and Paris

After successfully finishing what organisers call ‘the hardest triathlon in the world’, Richard Stabler is part of a select group of just 50 people.
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The 41-year-old, who grew up in Morpeth and still visits family in the town on a regular basis, recently completed the Enduroman Arch 2 Arc challenge from Marble Arch in London to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

At the time, he was the 48th person to do the whole route – which involves running 140km from London to Dover, swimming the English Channel and then a bike ride of 291km from Calais to Paris.

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The shortest distance between the English and French coasts is 33.8km, but due to currents and other factors, those who swim the English Channel will swim a longer distance. Athletes are allowed to take a break for a certain number of hours to refuel and sleep after the run and swim, and they must have a support team for the full distance.

Richard Stabler successfully completed the Enduroman Arch 2 Arc challenge.Richard Stabler successfully completed the Enduroman Arch 2 Arc challenge.
Richard Stabler successfully completed the Enduroman Arch 2 Arc challenge.

There was an early setback as on his first attempt Richard was stopped after 52km of running because the weather forecast had changed and organisers would not allow him to swim the English Channel. He had to start from the beginning, but still agreed to do so two days later when given the opportunity.

He said: “After starting triathlons at the age of 22, it did not take long for me to move on to the longer distance Ironman triathlons and in 2017 I completed the Norseman extreme triathlon.

“So this meant I was accepted by the Enduroman organisers as you have to apply to take part. I’ve always wanted to swim the English Channel and the fact that only a small number of people have successfully completed the challenge were the main factors for applying.

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“The English Channel was definitely the hardest section because you always have to maintain forward momentum and there are jellyfish and big waves to deal with.

“This also meant that whilst it was far from easy, I could enjoy parts of the bike ride and I stopped off for cakes in a couple of the villages.

“I was emotional when I reached Paris because I had spent the previous 15 months training for this challenge in my spare time (he is a director at Getty Images in London).”

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