HARLOW man Chris Brown, is set to join the ranks of sporting legends Mo Farah and Jessica Ennis Hill and run at the iconic Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park next month – thanks to winning a spot in a very unique team…

51 year old Chris suffered an achillies injury three years ago which not only affected his strength, but had a serious impact on his confidence as he became terrified that putting any extra strain on his body could cause further damage and pain.

Deciding not to let fear hold him back, Chris has been on a mission to make exercise a regular part of his life once more. Commited to getting fit and healthy once more, Chris also challenged himself to lose 2 and a half stone before the year is out, he is half way there and admits that he’s in need of some support to keep him motivated.

Chris entered a competition after listening an interview with Greg Whyte he heard on TalkSPORT, run by 9BAR, the super seed brand, looking for ‘Can’t Doers of Britain’ and daring them to take part in a special challenge.

Open to everyone, from couch potatoes to grannies, 9BAR’s nationwide search called for people from different walks of life to shake off their slump, stop saying no and instead, say yes to joining #Team9BAR and take part in the Great Newham Run, with exclusive training provided by celebrity trainer and Olympian, Professor Greg Whyte, OBE.

Greg believes that ‘anyone can achieve the impossible’ and he is a man who knows more than most about overcoming obstacles – having witnessed hundreds of meltdown moments first hand through his involvement with numerous celebrity Comic and Sport Relief challenges.

From pounding the pavement at Jo Brand’s side as she plodded through her 135 mile ‘Hell of a Walk’, convincing Eddie Izzard to try on his first pair of running trainers (thus easing him into 27 marathons) and treading freezing water with David Walliams as he fought his way across the English channel, Greg has been the driving force behind some remarkable high profile sporting achievements, and now he’s turning his hand to help Debbie reach her goals.

Self employed Chris believes that running and keeping fit is the best stress buster around and is determined to get himself into good habits that cannot be broken in order to reap the benefits. He ideally wants to use this training to enable him to complete the challenge in under an hour.

Chris says: “Listening to Greg talk about the type of people he and 9BAR were looking for made me sit up and pay attention. He could have been talking directkly to me! I’m not a natural runner but I find that once I get into a flow then I enjoy it. I’d love to learn how to make the most of my work outs for the future.”

Greg says: “Achillies injuries can be brutal. I’m not surprised Chris was nervous about getting back into exercise after suffering one. I’m keen to teach him how to run without putting undue strain on his body, which should help give him the confidence to continue.”

Lucky Chris was selected from hundreds of entries and will join 8 other runners to form #Team9BAR. Prepping him in the crucial weeks running up to this, Greg and 9BAR will be equipping him with a tailor-made training programme and nutritional advice, all of which will be especially personalised to suit him and give him the strength to ensure his previous injury doesn’t hold him back.
Chris will be taking her position in the Great Newham Run on July 17th, spectating, cheering and well wishing is positively encouraged!