If you have ever doubted your ability to change the course of your path, by any degree, we can guarantee that this conversation will change your mind.

At 24, John McAvoy was serving a life sentence at Belmarsh prison for armed robbery. Today, he is a Nike athlete, world record holder, key note speaker and dedicated to changing young people’s lives through trail running.

We unpick his momentous journey, which took a u-turn after discovering an unlikely talent for indoor rowing, which he took up as a means to escape his cell (located next to Abu Hamza) for a little extra time each week. This ticket to a morsel of freedom resulted in John breaking multiple indoor rowing world records and a pivotal shift in his life ambitions. Previously committed to a life of crime, John became committed to a life of sport and promised to become an elite athlete on his release.

He did just this, and much more. Alongside competing in ironman races and ultramarathons, delivering keynote speaking and authoring books, John founded the Alpine Run Project, an incredible Nike-backed initiative which takes young people from inner cities to the Alps, where they are trained by professional coaches to run in the iconic UTMB race.

Follow John McAvoy and the Alpine Run Project on Instagram:

@jonnymac83 | @alpinerunproject

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A big thanks to our sponsors for this episode:

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