Red Bull.com

In 1987 Christian Schiester was a 20-year-old slob weighing 100 kilos and smoking 40 cigarettes a day. But then he suddenly turned his back on that life and set out on the road that would lead to his becoming one of the greatest extreme runners in history. Within two years he had completed the New York marathon and won his first Austrian half-marathon crown. Twenty five further national titles were to follow before Christian opted to push the boundaries even further by entering the 2003 Marathon des Sables – a six-day race across the Sahara Desert. He finished in 12th-place and was hooked on the sport, The next year he not only won the five-day Himalayan Run, but broke the race record by 15 minutes. In 2006 he took on a marathon through the Brazilian jungle and followed that up with a triumph in the Antarctica Ultra Race at the South Pole. Now he has set his sights on the 1000km Desert Cup race which takes him across four of the world’s most inhospitable plains. An inspiration to all.