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The 20-Year Race

Gobi March (Mongolia) 2024

250 KM, 6-STAGE FOOTRACE

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The 20-Year Race (Jordan) 2024

250 KM, 6-STAGE FOOTRACE

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The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2024

250 KM, 6-STAGE FOOTRACE

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Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2025

250 KM, 6-STAGE FOOTRACE

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4 DESERTS CLUB

4 Deserts Champions
4 Deserts Club
4 Deserts Grand Slam
4 Deserts Grand Slam Plus
Record Holders

4 DESERTS CLUB

The 4 Deserts Ultramarathon Series was founded in 2002. As part of the 4 Deserts Ultramarathon Series, competitors may aspire to join the 4 Deserts Club. In order to become a member, one must successfully complete four 250-kilometer (155 mile), self-supported footraces which include: the Atacama Crossing (Chile), the Gobi March (Mongolia)*, the Namib Race (Namibia)** and The Last Desert (Antarctica). There are no exceptions to this rule. Competitors that successfully complete these races will receive a 4 Deserts medal and join one of the most elite clubs in the world. To date, 309 individuals have qualified and joined the 4 Deserts Club. 4 Deserts Club member names are listed below.

*The Gobi March has also taken place in China.

**The Namib Race was formerly called the Sahara Race and took place in Egypt, Jordan and Namibia.

Shyy, Wenching (Ted)

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2024

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Charles, Richard

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2024

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Walker, Rebecca

4 Deserts Club (Female) 2024

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Kido, Ryoji

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2023

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Bikmetov, Radmir

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2023

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Hoffman, Doreen

4 Deserts Club (Female) 2023

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Shimoni, Eyal

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2023

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Reynolds, Lara

4 Deserts Club (Female) 2023

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Azevedo, Arthur

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2022

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Morishita, Terumichi

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2022

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Bezou, John

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2022

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Gawron, Michal

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2022

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Williams, Michael

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2022

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Zender, Elise

4 Deserts Club (Female) 2022

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Ilczyszyn, Julita

4 Deserts Club (Female) 2022

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Mutaguchi, Rena

4 Deserts Club (Female) 2022

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Dame, Ben

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2022

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Swart, Anim

4 Deserts Club (Female) 2022

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Whitman, Beth

4 Deserts Club (Female) 2022

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Al Katheeri, Ahmed

4 Deserts Club (Male) 2022

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Wenching (Ted) Shyy

4 Deserts Club 2024

Taiwan

Races Completed

Gobi March (Mongolia) 2019
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Namib Race (Namibia) 2024

BIO

Wenching Shyy (Ted)

Richard Charles

4 Deserts Club 2024

New Zealand

Races Completed

Gobi March (China) 2015
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2018
RacingThePlanet: New Zealand 2019
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Namib Race (Namibia) 2024

BIO

Richard Charles

Rebecca Walker

4 Deserts Club 2024

United States

Races Completed

Gobi March (China) 2013
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2014
RacingThePlanet: Patagonia 2017
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2018
Namib Race (Namibia) 2024

BIO

Rebecca Walker

Ryoji Kido

4 Deserts Club 2023

Japan

Races Completed

Sahara Race (Namibia) 2016
Gobi March (China) 2017
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2018
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2023

BIO

Radmir Bikmetov

4 Deserts Club 2023

Russian Federation

Races Completed

Gobi March (Mongolia) 2019
Namib Race (Namibia) 2021
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2023

BIO

Doreen Hoffman

4 Deserts Club 2023

United States

Races Completed

RacingThePlanet: Iceland 2013
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2019
Namib Race (Namibia) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2023

BIO

Eyal Shimoni

4 Deserts Club 2023

Israel

Races Completed

Gobi March (Mongolia) 2019
Namib Race (Namibia) 2021
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2023

BIO

Lara Reynolds

4 Deserts Club 2023

Denmark

Races Completed

RacingThePlanet: Sri Lanka 2016
RacingThePlanet: Patagonia 2017
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2018
Namib Race (Namibia) 2019
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023

BIO

Lara is originally from South Africa but lives in Hong Kong where she works as a company director. She is a past champion having won the Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2018. She has also taken part in RacingThePlanet: Madagascar 2014, RacingThePlanet: Sri Lanka 2016, RacingThePlanet: Patagonia 2017, the Namib Race (Namibia) 2019, The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022 and the Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023. Lara joined the 4 Deserts Club after completing the Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023. Lara raised money for Mother's Choice, a charity that support single mothers in need.

Arthur Azevedo

4 Deserts Club 2022

Brazil

Races Completed

Gobi March (China) 2017
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2018
Namib Race (Namibia) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022

BIO

Arthur Azevedo is from Sao Paulo in Brazil. Arthur says: “Running is a passion and being among new, diverse, and international people is a pleasure. At 4 Deserts races, I find them all in one place.” Professionally, Arthur is starting his own practice as an independent board member and business advisor. He is the husband of Arlete and father to Gabriel and Bernardo.

Terumichi Morishita

4 Deserts Club 2022

Japan

Races Completed

Namib Race (Namibia) 2022
Special Edition: Georgia 2022
RacingThePlanet: Lapland 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022

BIO

Terumichi Morishita, known as Mori Mori, is an engineer for Toyota in Japan. Mori Mori has an impressive record of ultramarathon results having won the championship in Okinawa Survival Race four (!) times in which he also holds the course record of 55 hours. He also has an impressive finishing time for the 100km distance of 8:46:33; and in a 24-hour race he completed 231km. He finished 69th in UTMF 2018 in under 30 hours; and was 39th in the Marathon des Sables in 2019. In 2022, he completed the 4 Deserts Grand Slam Plus, a feat which only eight people in the world had achieved before.

John Bezou

4 Deserts Club 2022

United States

Races Completed

Namib Race (Namibia) 2022
Special Edition: Georgia 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023

BIO

John Bezou is a retired Army Officer who joins The Last Desert 2022 from Colorado in the United States. John completed the 4 Deserts Grand Slam when he completed The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022.

Michal Gawron

4 Deserts Club 2022

Poland

Races Completed

Sahara Race (Namibia) 2018
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2018
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2018
Namib Race (Namibia) 2022
RacingThePlanet: Lapland 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023

BIO

Michal Gawron from Poland was set to complete the 4 Deserts Grand Slam in 2018 – he completed the Namib Race (Namibia), the Gobi March (Mongolia) and the Atacama Crossing (Chile) but then had to cancel the last race in the series and couldn’t make it to Antarctica. In 2022, he fulfilled that challenge, something previously only eight people in the world had achieved.

Michael Williams

4 Deserts Club 2022

United States

Races Completed

Gobi March (China) 2015
Sahara Race (Namibia) 2016
RacingThePlanet: Patagonia 2017
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2019
RacingThePlanet: Georgia 2021
RacingThePlanet: Lapland 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023

BIO

American Michael Williams is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine at an emergency facility for critically injured pets at the Animal Emergency Clinic of South Florida in Miami. Married with three children, he still finds time for running having completed ultramarathons around the United States and the world. Michael completed the 4 Deserts Grand Slam Plus at The Last Desert (Antarctica) in 2022.

Elise Zender

4 Deserts Club 2022

Germany

Races Completed

Namib Race (Namibia) 2022
Special Edition: Georgia 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023

BIO

Elise Zender is from Munich in Germany where is she works in private equity. Through the RacingThePlanet events, she raised money to support the Women Empowerment project of the NGO L'appel, who sponsor scholarships for female education in Sierra Leone. At The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022, Elise completed the 4 Deserts Grand Slam Plus.

Julita Ilczyszyn

4 Deserts Club 2022

Poland

Races Completed

Namib Race (Namibia) 2022
Special Edition: Georgia 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023

BIO

Julita Ilczyszyn from Poland completed the 4 Deserts Grand Slam 2022. Julita is the mother of two wonderful children, wife to Kris, and a fitness instructor. Through the 4 Deserts Grand Slam, she dedicated each of the deserts to women who fight for a day without pain, working hard to give comfort to their sick children. She raised money for at least one day of relaxation for them, because in their lives they do not think about themselves at all, but only want good for their children.

Rena Mutaguchi

4 Deserts Club 2022

Japan

Races Completed

Namib Race (Namibia) 2022
Special Edition: Georgia 2022
RacingThePlanet: Lapland 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023

BIO

Japanese competitor Rena Mutaguchi works at a financial IT company as a support engineer in Tokyo. She loves travelling and running. After taking part in the Marathon des Sables in 2013, she got hooked on stage races. At The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022, she completed the 4 Deserts Grand Slam Plus, something only 8 people (only 2 women) had achieved prior to the race.

Ben Dame

4 Deserts Club 2022

Germany

Races Completed

RacingThePlanet: Madagascar 2014
RacingThePlanet: Sri Lanka 2016
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2016
Gobi March (China) 2017
Sahara Race (Namibia) 2018
Namib Race (Namibia) 2021
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022

BIO

German competitor Ben Dame joined the 4 Deserts Club at The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022 which was his seventh time at a RacingThePlanet / 4 Deserts Race. When he is not running, Ben is the founder and CEO of HealthMatters.io, a digital health tech company.

Anim Swart

4 Deserts Club 2022

South Africa

Races Completed

Namib Race (Namibia) 2019
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2019
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2019
Namib Race (Namibia) 2022
RacingThePlanet: Georgia (Special Edition) 2022
RacingThePlanet: Lapland 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022

BIO

Anim Swart, from Canada and the United States, completed the 4 Deserts Grand Slam Plus after successfully finishing The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022.

Beth Whitman

4 Deserts Club 2022

United States

Races Completed

Namib Race (Namibia) 2021
RacingThePlanet:
Georgia 2021
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023

BIO

Beth Whitman has been an adventurer and traveller for much of her life but only began running in her mid-40s after a lifetime of telling herself that she wasn´t a runner. She now runs a travel company taking people to unusual places around the world. Finally, she ran her first marathon at 50, and ended up running five marathons that same year. She then took on the challenge to complete the 4 Deserts Grand Slam which she completed in 2022.

Ahmed Al Katheeri

4 Deserts Club 2022

United Arab Emirates

Races Completed

Namib Race (Namibia) 2021
Special Edition: Georgia 2022
RacingThePlanet: Lapland 2022
Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2022
The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022
Gobi March (Mongolia) 2023

BIO

Ahmed Hussein Al Katheeri from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates is the first Emirati to complete the 4 Deserts Ultramarathon Series. He not only joined the 4 Deserts Club when he completed The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2022, but he also completed the 4 Deserts Grand Slam Plus which means he completed 1,250km of running across the major deserts of the world! Prior to 2022, only eight people in the world had achieved this feat. Ahmed is an expert at ultrarunning having also been the first person from the UAE to complete a 270km, 4-stage race in the Al Marmoom Desert on his home turf and, in addition, in 2019 Ahmed was the first Emirati to finish the Marathon des Sables.

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