Officer tackles Sahara charity challenge

To add to the endurance test, Lieutenant Tom Sayer had to carry a rucksack containing water, food, clothes, medical kit and sleeping bag, weighing in at a hefty two stone.

Lt Sayer, 26, who went to Hymers College in Hull, came 124th out of 1,013 runners in the seven-day Marathon de Sables in Morocco, placing him 15th out of 250 British competitors.

Lt Sayer, who serves with Headquarters 1 Mechanized Brigade in Tidworth, Wiltshire, said: "It was without doubt the toughest thing I have ever done, both mentally and physically.

"On paper it looked tough, but nothing came close to how hard it actually turned out to be.

"Dehydration was a big thing and I drank 22 litres in the first two days and didn't need the loo once.

"On top of that, my hands swelled up so big I couldn't close them, we all had regular nosebleeds and my knee injury from before the race was agony.

"Luckily I didn't get as bad blisters as some people, so that was a plus."

To celebrate its 25th anniversary, organisers made the race – the equivalent of six marathons – extra tough, with a course containing about 18 miles of sand dunes, 43 miles of flat sand, scores of large hills and a couple of mountains.

Lt Sayer, who is due for a tour of duty in Afghanistan in August, said: "One in particular, on day two, was almost vertical and, at the end of a marathon, was very difficult to get over.

"Finally, the race recorded some of the hottest temperatures on record, averaging 45C (115F) and getting well over 50C (125F plus) on three of the days."

Lt Sayer was talked into taking part in the challenge by a friend, Vijay Ahuja, a doctor in the Royal Navy, and together they are hoping to have raised 40,000 for two charities, Help for Heroes, and Facing Africa.

The Facing Africa charity helps tackle Noma, an acute and ravaging gangrenous infection which mainly affects children under six in sub-Saharan Africa.

Lt Sayer completed a degree at Cambridge University, followed by a gap-year teaching maths and science in New Zealand.

After returning to the UK, he became a project manager with an IT consultancy in London, before he joined the Army in 2007 and was commissioned as an officer a year later.

To support them log on to www.MDSChallenge2010.co.uk