Sam King

Meet Sam King – an extraordinary human taking on the challenge of a lifetime for his beloved mum.
Sam is running 74 ultra marathons in 74 days to raise awareness and vital funds for Headway UK – the brain injury association. His journey is full of resilience, love, and determination.

Read on to discover snippets from Sam’s inspiring story as we follow his progress.

Sam is documenting his journey on Instagram, follow him @fatboysking

Inspired? Donate to Sam's fundraiser and send him a message of support!

Hi, I’m Sking, and from 27 September 2025, I’ll be running 74 ultramarathons in 74 days.

This challenge means a lot to me, for a few reasons.

Back in January this year, my dear Mum and best friend collapsed in my arms after suffering a brain bleed. When we got to the hospital, we were told she wouldn’t survive, but somehow, she did. Sadly, she can't walk anymore, feed herself, or hold a proper conversation. It’s completely changed her life, and all of ours too.

Now, I know everyone says the same thing about their parents - but I can’t stress enough how incredible a woman my Mum is. She's always been my best friend in the whole world. Just the most selfless, loving, larger-than-life person I’ve ever known or will ever know. One of a kind.

I’ve always promised myself that I would never let anything big in my life just pass me by, and be consumed by work and everything else going on. And I refuse to let the miracle of my mum still being here pass me by. And that’s it — that’s really it. That’s why I’m doing everything I’m about to do.

I’m leaving my job in London and moving back home to be near her, and to take on this challenge in her honour. 74 is significant because that's how old Mum was when she got ill, so I'll be running an ultramarathon for every year of her life before she got ill.

But it’s also about something more.

A few years ago, I was severely overweight and completely addicted to gaming. I was actually number 1 in the world on Call of Duty at one point! Coming out of that phase, I struggled with my mental and physical health and felt lost. Then I found running, and it changed everything. It gave me structure, purpose, confidence... it basically rewired my brain and helped me find a version of myself I didn’t know existed.

Now, I’m taking on the biggest challenge of my life, and raising money for Headway UK, a brilliant charity that supports people and families affected by brain injury. Brain injuries are the most complex injuries to deal with and are the least predictable when it comes to understanding eventual outcomes. I’ve seen first-hand how hard it is when something like this happens, and how much help people really need.

If you can donate, share, or just follow along - I’d really appreciate it. Every mile I run is for my Mum. And every bit of support will help others like her.

Thanks so much,
Sam

1850km down, 1850km to go: Sam is halfway through!

Day 37 of Sam’s mammoth challenge saw him reach the halfway point- the equivalent of running from Frinton in Essex all the way to Rome!

Cheering Sam over the halfway mark were an incredible 277 individuals from local running clubs who laced up their runners to join Sam on his 37^th ultra.

Sam said: “A massive thank you to the local running clubs for organising to come down and run with me. It was a beautiful thing to do. I loved it.”

After finishing his 37^th run, Sam spent time with his family and said it was,

A perfect end to the day.

Fun facts:

• Sam is now on his third pair of trainers, as he typically switches them out every two weeks.
• He is consuming between 5500 and 6000 calories per day to fuel his runs!

Sam’s gone viral!

Day 40 saw Sam finish his 50km with an appeal- to help his challenge get some airtime, and boy did it take off!

Sam’s call was heard far and wide and saw him featured on Good Morning Britain, ITV News, BBC News and various podcasts.

Sam said day 48 was a day he “definitely wouldn’t be forgetting anytime soon” as it saw him chat to Jenni Falconer for weekly podcast Run Pod, as well as Running and chatting with celebs including husband-and-wife TV personalities Spencer Matthews and Vogue Williams.

Spencer is taking on his own challenge, dubbed Project SE7EN, which will see him complete seven triathlons on seven continents in 21 days.

Sam said: “I absolutely loved being on Run Pod. What a joy it was to chat with her and meet her lovely team.

“Then it was on to see my physio for a quick appointment. And then we headed down to Hyde Park for the run part of Spencer Matthews’ first triathlon – one of seven across seven continents in the next three weeks.

“A great day, but a long one. I’m absolutely knackered now and trying to get as much food down as possible before crashing out around 10pm- and doing it all over again in the morning.

“Above all, the awareness of the challenge continues to grow and fundraising for Headway gets closer and closer to £74,000 every day.

Thank you EVERYONE for following this crazy journey and for supporting in any way you can.

Sam hits the fundraising halfway mark: £37,000 raised toward £74,000 goal

Sam has raised an incredible £37,000 for Headway UK- helping more survivors and loved ones get the support they need.

That’s the equivalent of powering Headway UK’s free nurse-led helpline for nearly two months!

Headway’s helpline is a free, confidential service available to anyone with a question about brain injury - from survivors and carers to students and professionals.

Run by a team of trained nurses and non-clinical staff with expertise in supporting people with brain injury, Headway’s helpline aims to provide information on all aspects of acquired brain injury including symptoms, rehabilitation and practical problems.

Helen Craig, Fundraising Manager at Headway UK, said: “A huge Headway thank you to you, Sam and to everyone backing this incredible journey so far!

“You've already raised an amazing £37,000 - this could fund our nurse-led helpline for almost two whole months, supporting 2,000 families facing the challenges of brain injury. Your compassion is changing lives - and you're still going strong!

You've got this Sam, we're cheering you on all the way to the finish line!

2500km in 50 days

A huge milestone day,

Sam coined it- reaching day 50 of running 74 ultramarathons in 74 days for his mum, Penny, and for Headway UK.

“The fundraising is catching up to the days, as we are now on £42,000! It’s unbelievable!”

Sam was once again joined by local runners, who showed up to offer their support in Sam’s mammoth challenge.

But it’s called a challenge for a reason, Sam said, as day 50 saw him run with a sore knee, and by the following day he said it was “hanging on by a thread”.

Sam said: “The only real injury I’ve ever had in my running life was a stress fracture in the same knee back in 2023... and right now the pain is all too familiar to the pain I felt before that injury.

“It takes a lot of joy out of running when it feels like my knee could give way at any moment, and that this whole challenge could be over in an instant.”

Ever the optimist, Sam added: “But that said, another day DONE. And the fat lady isn’t singing yet.”

Donate to Sam's fundraiser and send him a message of support!