Soul Brothers: Mathieu Blanchard Embarks on a Mission of Brotherhood | Salomon TV

Try not to catch it like that. You can avoid it. -Watch where you put your feet. -That’s not the problem. It’s not that. It hurts. I’m Mathieu Blanchard, I’m 34 years old. I’m a professional ultra-trail runner. We’re in the South of France, in Provence, in a little village called Cheval Blanc. We are at the foot of the Luberon I don’t live here, it’s my family home where I go sometimes, to recharge my batteries from time to time in between adventures or races. I’m the eldest child of a big family. I have five brothers and a sister. This is my mom’s house where my youngest brother, Luca, lives. -Shall we check the gear? -Yep. If you’re missing any gear in the adventure, it could be problematic and there is also the mandatory gear. Let’s take a look at the new pack, have you checked to see if the flasks fit? There we are, yep they go in. I’ve been thinking about doing an adventure project with Luca for a long time. In 2021, I did the Marathon des Sables a race that takes you across a large part of the Sahara Desert. I heard they were doing an event for the first time in the Jordan desert called the Wadi Rum, the Half Marathon des Sables. I shot the idea at Luca, to see if he’d be interested. He was apprehensive at first and I said "don’t worry, we’ll motivate each other". Then he said, Ok let’s go bro, let’s give it a shot, but it’ll be a huge thing for me. It’s based on the Marathon des Sables, which is around 250 to 300 kilometres, so a Half is between 100 and 150 kilometres. Its idea is centred around a bivouac. It’s a several-day stage race, and that’s what makes it so interesting because it becomes a real adventure where you have minimal comfort, in other words, a small tent, sleeping bags and you have to be self-sufficient with food. We need to prepare all this gear. Headlamps, survival blanket, 10 safety pins, a lighter, porridge, 3-cheese lasagne, rice pudding, mac and cheese. Sunday, Monday, Tuesday. It’s all here. -Are you nervous Luca? -No, I’m ok. It’s OK? At the end of the day, you have a great coach. Yes! There is something you need to be very careful with Luca. To avoid piercing the sole, make sure when you set it up don’t be afraid to whack it, pull it right up to the end, to be sure that the blade is right in. Pull this hard. Otherwise, if you don’t do that, -it will put stress on this part here -and after a while, it will rip, ok. Ok, is there anything else you need to know about the blade? No, nothing. It’s up to him if he uses the sole or not, we need to reshape it at the front but that's easy. With scissors? -If you want we can do that later today. -Okay He was saying that it’s maybe a good idea to take the foot. Yes I’m taking it otherwise, three days just with the blade. For the evening, for walking? Oh yeah, yeah. Let’s go and try all of that. Do you need the sock? Yes. You won’t get it on without it because it’s plastic on top. It’s a nightmare to get it in. Classy! It’s heavy though. Shall I wedge it at the back of your pack? Yes! That’s pretty good. There you go. -I’m all set -Ready? -Ready. -Shall we test it? Let’s go! -Have a good time. -We’re confident it'll do the job. -Me too! -Thanks Patrick. -Enjoy. -Thanks a lot. Just have a good time. Thanks. Get your poles ready. Luca has an extrovert’s soul trapped in an introvert’s shell. I was 15-years-old when he was born, so I was already a grown-up boy in full adolescence. I left home quite young, at 18, for my studies. So, I didn’t really grow up with Luca. I wasn’t lucky enough to be there during tough times, to answer those questions that a close big brother usually does. It’s something that has always bothered me being far away, I regret it, but I didn’t have the choice. It was my studies, my work and it was life that happened that way. I want to know what’s going on in his life, make up for lost time. That’s what I’m hoping to do with my little brother Luca on this adventure. It’ll be just the two of us. I’m hoping it will bring us much closer together. Water bottles, food, hat, sunglasses. We’ve worked really hard today. Yes. Luca is very brave and amazes us all with his incredible courage, a lot of resilience, even when things aren’t going well or if I’m unhappy, his smile is there like a ray of sunshine. and of course, he’s a handsome boy. When he was 15, he had a road accident. It was awful. I had an out-of-body experience, it was as if I was here, but actually I was over there, and I experienced it like a film on TV. So, it happened here. I was going home, I was coming back on my motorbike, and the car turned, we collided full on. I was ejected just here by the give-way sign. The motorbike fell on top of me, and caught fire. At first, I thought I had nothing wrong, I was fine, I was talking and everything, until they put me in a coma. He awoke with his leg cut off. I wanted to wait a while, but the doctors said I should tell him immediately. So, he was… In fact he didn’t understand what we were telling him. He started touching himself. He was amputated, but what had been amputated? Because he had both his legs before he was put to sleep. So, he didn’t understand what we were telling him. So, I called a nurse who came and explained, and asked him what questions he had. He daren’t ask, she said "your mum said you wanted to know what the big bandage was?" and she explained to him that the bandage was there because they had cut off his leg. We are leaving at 6:00 am. I would’ve preferred that they go to the cinema together. or a Pizzeria or Aqualand! No, it’s okay, don’t worry. I think the only reference I have for Jordan is Indiana Jones. with Sean Connery, he's super cool that one with his hat. Luca really looks up to his big brother. and I think this adventure is really because he wants to be on his own with his brother. I wanted to go with them, but they said strictly no mums allowed. He must’ve said yes to Mathieu to really do something with him, because he has missed not doing anything with him. because he doesn’t see him very often. I’m so proud that the two brothers are doing something together. It’s really their own thing. The idea behind this race, is to show anyone with a disability that you can still do sports and do a lot of sport. and it is thanks to sport that you get through it. because Mathieu did really inspire him. Actually, his first UTMB® race, he was really inspired by his brother. I think it was exactly six months after Luca’ accident, Mathieu, had promised Luca that he would do the UTMB® finish line with him. I said to him "Listen Luca, I’d like you to train so you will be ready to run the last 100 metres, 200 metres, 300 metres of the UTMB® with me up to the finish arch. So, he started training, every day he went running. He took it very seriously. Back then, it was the hardest race I’d done in my life. I wanted to throw in the towel everywhere! I remember half-way through at Courmayeur, when I said to my mum "I'm going to stop, I’m dead." and she said "Luca wasn’t allowed to come into the aid station but he’s just outside, he’s waiting for you." It’s 2 or 3 in the morning, everyone has made the effort to come and see you and even Luca, who can’t do whatever he wants, he’s there for you! That gave me a boost, like an electrical charge. I decided to set off on the second part of the race for the last 80K and from then on, I just thought about him. I went to the end and I remember Luca waiting for me with this enormous smile. Today, looking back, I'm practically convinced that I wouldn’t have finished this race if he hadn’t been there and been the source of my mental energy. This was really the first day that he showed, to many more people even being filmed or in photos, his disability. I think right then, he realized that in his new life with his disability, yes, the challenges were going to be more difficult but he was capable of doing them, in a different, adapted way. This was a turning point for him. Straight after the UTMB®, we were all together at home. I remember saying, when you’re older, an adult, we will do a bigger adventure together. I promise, and it will be something major for you, for me and to show that it’s possible to keep living and doing amazing challenges despite the disability. Are your running backpacks in there? In the bags yes. OK. Have a safe trip. -OK, bye. -Seeyah, my boys. Bye, bye. Not many people in the water! The race isn’t just the start and finish lines. There’s everything that happens beforehand, the day before, when you go and pick up your race bib. and it's really part of the race because you feel the tension rising Perfect, thanks. I’m really thrilled that Luca is experiencing all this and this is the first race bib he’s ever had in his life! and it’s by no means the smallest challenge - it’s not a local 5K. We’re about to set off across the desert, so it's one weighty race bib! You need to spread it out inside the pack, so it doesn’t hurt your back and it’s well balanced. Put the food for the day in front so it’s to hand. -Everything that goes at the back, is what you don’t use, ok? -Ok. I have enough food for an army! I hope you realise how lucky you are to have such a lightweight pack! Did you see in the area where they were giving out the race bibs, the size of the packs the guys had? Carrying their houses on their backs. There we go! All set bro, now we just have to do it! Here. Good night, see you tomorrow for a new adventure. There’s no turning back now, we’re here. Let's go! Three, two, one, GO! We’re off! We’re off my Lucanou! Slow down! Where are we headed? We’re headed over there! Is that the first time you’re walking with it in the sand? In the sand, yes. It’s not brilliant. It’s not brilliant for everyone hey! I’m worried about the adventure because we’re running in very soft, floury sand. I’m hoping it won’t last for long because it'll be tough going for him. We’ve just done a sandy section back there, now, we’re on quite a different, rocky section, a long uphill, it varies, it’s different. So, we keep going. -Everything ok till now? -Yep, perfect. It’s hot He was incredible in that climb. Honestly, it’s steep. He climbs like a mountain goat!. It’s stunning. I can’t keep up with him, he's killing me. Go, go, Luca. Watch out, watch out! Look after your poles, because if you break them you’re stuffed. -Yep. -Be really careful. You can’t teach him anything. The poles are really fragile. If they get broken, it’ll be complicated Well done. Well done. Well done. Everything OK? I drank everything. Drink, you know the drill. Off you go, Luca, I’ll catch you up. Good luck. Thanks! Every time, he says he’s fine, but... he’s struggling. You watch his body language, it never lies. Look, can you see, he’s wincing, he’s all off balance. It’s pure willpower. I hope he can hang in there. It’s only the first day and I already have a little brother, Luca, who’s starting to twist a bit with one knee going inwards, a hip that’s going the other way. It's what we were expecting, I knew it would be tough, but I didn’t know it would be this difficult right from the start. Come on Luca! Grit your teeth! Come on, it’s brilliant my bro. You OK? My calf is cramping. A cramp? At the top? Yeah, but it’s okay. It’s okay. A little cramp. At least you can’t have cramps in your left calf!. -Absolutely. -That’s one advantage. You see, I have a f***ing pain in my left foot and you don’t have a pain in your left foot so, don’t complain! [ End of the day, first stage. We are sick and tired of this soft sand. His prothesis is sinking in everywhere. He’s in agony all over, but he fights on. We still have 3 or 4K, before we are freed from the day. It's just behind. I think we’ve done it haven’t we? How many more metres? Come on. F***, he’s killing me. Well done! Fantastic! Today’s heroes! Well done Mathieu. He just kept going thank goodness you stopped him! He was setting off on the next stage straight away! He can be destroyed barely moving forward, heaving on his poles, dragging his blade in the sand. and suddenly, he has a second wind that comes out of nowhere. He can finish strong running towards the finish line. We finished among the first half of the pack. I was astonished, but I don’t want him to think that means it’s done, and that was his aim. At last we can take off this backpack. -Oh happiness! -Oh yes! I told you!. and that’s just the simple pleasure of sitting down. Imagine the beer next to the hotel pool in 4 days time. Even I’m suffering. I feel washed out. It was cool, I found it really tough at the end. I had a really hard time, I had a really low point. I asked him if we’d passed the 20K mark, but I shouldn’t have. I thought we were closer to the 25K mark so that hit me hard. Come on, let’s toast, it’s not Ricard but... It’s a herb tea, it’s comforting. But honestly, don’t worry, you can sleep easy tonight. Everyone is in pain, it’s normal, it’s an adventure we aren’t just out for a Sunday stroll. Give yourself a bit of a massage, Go on the mat there and massage yourself a bit. I'll go afterwards. F***, you need to pierce that. You need to pierce it I hadn’t even seen it, that's why it was hurting. You can stay barefoot, just but put your flip-flop on and we’ll go. -Good evening. -Good evening. And what if we decide to do it 100% walking? No, no, no. It’s not that bad. No, it’s not painful. No, it’s just that because we walk a lot, maybe you would be better off then your foot wouldn’t sink as much in the sand. It would sink in a lot less. We’ll see tomorrow, we’ll see after tonight. We suck out the juice, and we keep it to make a herbal tea. Exactly. What are you doing? He must be saying, f*** I’m having a needle stuck into my foot. Mine is huge! No kidding! -Oh yeah. -Not bad hey? Honestly, you’re today’s record holder. We’re slightly worried about the next part. As he uses two, three, four, five, maybe ten times more energy than able-bodied people, he will need as much for recovery. So, I told him to go and rest now to recover as quickly as possible to be ready for tomorrow’s stage. Goodnight. Buenas noches. Oh yes, I’m stiff. -So, Luca? -Yeah? You okay? Did you sleep well? Yeah. I’m okay. Don’t take too long, we’re on the start line in 20 minutes. Yeah, yeah, I know. Today, Day 2, Luca woke up a bit destroyed. Today, we have the choice between various distances and he’s worried about the pain if we do the longest distance. So, I told him not to worry, and we’ll see how it goes during the race. and depending on how he feels, we’ll decide which distance we do. Thanks. Thanks. I really want you to make sure that you choose the right distance that you know how to manage your efforts. You know what the terrain is like that awaits you. The temperature will be fairly pleasant, so, you are going to have plenty of fun out there on today’s stage. You’ll be fine, you’ve got great support Yeah, yeah. We’re kicking off Day 2. I think Luca has rusted up a bit. Have you rusted up? A little bit yes. Find us some WD-40 to loosen him up! Then it’ll be like a rocket launch on this new day in the desert for the Wadi Rum. It’s so cool! My groin is really painful. I can’t lift my leg anymore. The right leg. -You’re dragging the able leg. -That’s right. That's tricky. Tomorrow we will be able to rest a bit, recover. Go right ahead bit. Go and see the medical staff see if we can get you some pain relief. Right now, it's tough. 5 to 6K after we left and he’s already struggling, really struggling. He’s not saying anything, but judging by his body language I can tell that it’s very painful. It’s like he’s hauling a ball and chain through the sand on each foot. At that point, I’m wondering if we will even be able to do the 20K, The shade will do us good. Go, go, go. Do you want to sit down over there to eat something? -No. -There’s a chair too. No, I’ll stay standing. One thing is for sure, we are definitely not going to try to do the big loop because just reaching the finish line will be an exploit in itself. So, at the checkpoint, we decided to do the 20K. -Did you ever think about giving up this morning? -No -No. -No? I would’ve liked to have stopped, but on the other hand I really don’t want to. -Shall we go? -Yep. Ok, you’re the one who decides. Ouch, f***. I don’t understand him. He’s pigheaded, he doesn’t want to, "it’s okay, I’m fine". He's pigheaded, and nothing stops him moving forward either. He’s real mule. I leave him alone in his bubble a while, it does him good, he finds his own rythme. Then he can listen to his music full blast. Otherwise, I just don’t stop yapping, and he lowers his music to hear me. It’s good for his morale, he knows we are turning behind that cliff and head towards the camp and in his mind that will do him good. Let’s go. He has cast-iron willpower, he’s not complaining, but I’m thinking what sort of a brother brings him to a place like this? Maybe he’s hating every waking moment he's experiencing, in his mind he’s saying, "why did I say yes to coming here? My brother is a pain in the a**", Luca would never have been in this desert if I hadn’t asked him to come here. If I hadn’t called him one day and said "OK Luca, you’re 20 now I’ll take you on an adventure, we’re going to do something crazy together", and watching him suffer like that sometimes, I blamed myself. Wow! Nice hey! It's beautiful! We made the right choice doing this loop because the others won’t see this. Go. Yes. Okay, impressive! In fact you’ve been having us on about your psoas since the start you cheeky b*****! Go, Luca! Luca is the King! I’m happy, my little Luca is starting to open up. Yesterday, he was totally introverted. and on the second day, paradoxically, under this extreme duress he's breaking out of his shell a little. he's showing his feelings, he’s talking, he’s smiling through his pain. It's beautiful, really beautiful to see. I'm happy. I can’t wait to see what happens next. Well done my Luca. "Look for the bare necessities, the simple bare necessities..." This morning I was worried at the 50th kilometre. Oh, the sand. -In the end, -I’ve had enough. One step at a time. What did I say to you this morning about how to keep going when it gets tough? -What? -What did I say to you? I don’t know When your psoas was killing you, to keep yourself moving forward I’ve got no brain anymore, there’s no point in talking. It’s no longer my body that’s moving forward, it’s my brain, it’s physically dead. Did you know your blade is in a sorry state? It’s scratched to hell at the back. I couldn’t give a flying f***! Quite right. Does that remind you of something? Yesterday? Deliverance. I’m proud of you. Look forward, lift your head a bit. Enjoy it! -Lift your head, Luca. -No, I can’t now. Luca the Warrior! F***, he did it. Come on we’re going to race. -Ok, let’s go! -Yes! Even if he’s suffering a lot, or lagging, there’s something deep inside of him, a ball of energy that he’s capable of grabbing and releasing. Well done! Brilliant! Well done guys, honestly, respect. -Thanks. -Fantastic. You earned this one. Well done, you are incredible. -Are you proud of yourself? -Yeah. It is incredible what you've just done. Incredible. -It’s incredible, I’m so proud of you. -Well done. That's a star. Let’s drink some water. What distance guys? Sixty twice. 120 today. That feels good to sit down. Now, he's not bluffing. Since the beginning, by being in this state, it proves that he’s giving it everything he’s got and he’s pushing himself to extremes. I’m pleased because that’s exactly what I wanted him to do I didn’t want him to do it in half measures, like a Sunday stroll, that he came to push his limits and explore them and work on himself. How are your legs this evening? Honestly, they almost feel better than yesterday. -Yeah? -Yeah, I don’t know, Is your psoas still hurting? Yeah, it’s aching. -Especially the calf, otherwise... -The calf? Yeah. You know that after tomorrow we leave at 3 AM? -Yeah. -You already knew that? That's good, at least we will be able to run at night. Yeah, watch the sunrise and not suffer too much from the heat. Yeah, we're good here. Come on, cheers the crumble. -You had a rough time today bro -Yeah. Have you thought about your day again? No, not at all. -Are you a bit apprehensive for the day after tomorrow? -Yeah. It’ll be a bit longer than today. Yeah, I know, but a bit shorter than the first day. Anyway, I’ll be honest, I was pessimistic this morning. seeing after only 4 K that you were already suffering, just behind there, we left there. Remember the psoas? I thought, f***, it’s going to take forever to do 21 kilometres. Here, do you want it, it's disgusting. it's disgusting, it's disgusting. I cooked him a delicious crumble, and he says it's disgusting. -Oh no, it’s awful. -It’s awful, you agree. We don’t have the same thing at all. Taste mine. Ah yeah, that's delicious. It’s disgusting what I'm eating! It's disgusting. -Yeah, it’s horrible. -It's horrible. -What the hell is it? -It's horrible. It’s not even sweet, what is it? We’re going to throw it away, it's horrible. It's disgusting! You’ve been eating that since earlier? and I just want to eat a pizza. The Half Marathon des Sables, is a sufferfest all the way. It's horrible. Your dad and mum send you loads of courage. Oh yeah? Yeah. "We are so proud of Luca. give him loads of kisses". I’ll tell you again, I’m mega proud of what you’ve done, because you aren’t an athlete, you’ve a shovel instead of a foot and you’ve gone all the way. It would be good if you could find inside there’s something deep inside you that motivates you to move forward. A motivation. You may not find it immediately but think about it during the day you’ve got time. Yeah. It might not leap out at you. When you look right now, it won’t suddenly be apparent, but we all have something, a reason, that helps us to move forward. It could be family, friends, something you want to prove that you want to show. If you didn’t have a reason the way you were suffering today I can assure you, you would’ve stopped. You have something beautiful inside, you just need to find it, that’s really going to help you in life, even for other projects. Think about it and we'll talk about it later at the hotel over a nice beer. Yeah, a nice beer. Were you expecting it to be so painful? -Yeah, even worse. -Oh really? Yeah, I haven’t quite reached my limit yet. That’s good, reassuring, we’ll see... -Nevertheless only a slight margin. -A slight margin, not a lot. Oh my God. Let’s start putting bits there. Yeah, it’s cold! Wow, the rise and shine! Like a little imp popping out of his box or like a flower. Honestly, my legs are better than yesterday. It just takes some time to adapt then? -Yeah, it’s better than yesterday. This day off helped us to recover a maximum to be ready to attack the last day. It’s also a day that I want to teach my little brother, that we’re going to do together. We’re going to chat with other people in our camp. We’re also going to spend some time with Rachid, the King of the desert, who has won the Marathon des Sables countless times. That’s also what’s great, the champions are open and I'm thrilled to introduce him to my little brother. -Do you want to win tomorrow’s stage? -Yes, with pleasure I’ll give you a cup of tea! -Merci. -It’s my pleasure. It’s hot. Have you already done an adventure like this, or is it the first? -It’s the first. - Why did you choose the HMDS? It’s my brother who set me up, he threw me in at the deep end. -You’re on your own, no, nearly! -Nearly, not far off!. I wanted something that would stretch his limits where it’s hot, tough, sandy but also something with a community for him to discover adventure, sport and everything. -Here, everyone has a story to tell. -Exactly. Exactly. And you have the time to sit down, drink tea and share stories. -That’s it exactly. -Everyone benefits from it. Also, here, it’s a big family. For example, sometimes you might need something so you ask your neighbour and vice-versa. That’s solidarity. What do you do you when you’re training? -Do you use the same backpack you use for the MDS? -Yes. To train with? I train with a bit of weight, some sand, something to weigh you down? Do you fill it with sand? Yes, with sand. It’s the best. It's heavy yeah. There’s something that we will never have, that's the adaptation that you have. Exactly. You’ve got really strong runners. the only problem is the adaptation with the heat, we’re already used to the heat. It's not only the heat, it’s even the sun which burns your eyes. That's right. Also, they take a lot of water. -We only drink a little water, but others take a lot so it’s heavy. -Yes, it’s heavy. It’s good to share your experiences and desires with people. Watch out, maybe he’s going to beat you tomorrow thanks to all the good advice. Yeah, I hope so, anything’s possible. Of course, yes. He drinks some tea and he’s set. That’s all he needed! Which way do you want to climb up, Luca? -I’d really like to go up over there. -That way? -Yeah, over there -And the psoas? No, honestly, I will only be in Jordan once. That’s great! A good attitude to have. Make the most of it. This evening there will be less people because no-one will dare... It might be better with the sunset. We’ll come back down using head torches if it’s dark. Cool. Just, prepare your stuff for tomorrow. Don’t worry. You haven’t chosen the easiest route. F***. Ok. This was clearly a sign that Luca had managed to regroup and refocus his mind, to go out and add another challenge on top of his challenge. I thought that his psoas were destroyed but actually, he got up there no problem. Are you happy to be sharing this together since the start? -It's magnificent. -You don’t regret anything? No, never. If you managed to climb up here that means that you feel good. Do you feel good? I feel good. I feel much better than I did on the second stage. The second stage I was much more destroyed. It’s going to go well. It’ll be amazing! Anyway, you can finish off your psoas, you can finish your thighs as well because you won’t be needing them after the evening. -Why? -So, give it your all. It’s beautiful here. The light that is going between the cliff. We don’t have the chance to spend time together, it’s precious. The family is precious. My bro, the FAFA is precious. Yeah. Yep, that’s what stays. When you fall out with the family sometimes it’s the blood. It’s nice. This will be a special start for the last stage, because it’ll take place at night, at 4:30 AM, considering we noticed that the sun rises at 7:00 AM so there’s a long night section. Three, two, one, go! Good luck! I watch Luca like he was in the first stage, who sets off like a bat out of hell, overtaking everyone. and that’s when I realise that I haven’t got a clue about how his physical sensations or mindset work. He shows me how you can have an adrenalin rollercoaster. Come on Luca! Come on Luca! -You’re going to have the sunrise, it’s going to be incredible. -Thanks. The day off allowed him to recover like a refilling a bottle of energy that was completely empty the day before. and he set off with a bottle of energy fuller than the first day which had been emptied a bit by pre-race stress, the stress of doing something new. Look at the dune. Wow, no! How much elevation climb is that one? I think I can see people going up to the left, along the cliff over there. Can you see? It's fat, fat, fat. I know how energy-draining this type of dune is. I was thinking, how on earth is he going to manage this dune? We’re going to get stuck, his lame will get stuck in. This sand sucks -You are a killing me! -It does me good, it makes me feel better. -Why does it make you feel better? -I don’t know, I don’t have any pain. It warms me up! No, I mean, it warms me up even more. It destroys my legs more but it relieves the pain. You’ve been put together the wrong way round! You just killed me. The downhill we’re about do now. It’s so great! When we got to the top of this dune, I saw how steep it was. I was pretty worried. I said "Luca, please, the finish line is a long way off yet. we’re only halfway. take it easy, hold yourself back. don’t go mad. I’m afraid. I don’t want you to get hurt on that". Then, I just thought, Go for it, who gives a s***! You're crazy! That warms you up. Did you enjoy that mate? Oh yeah, it was mega. -I could’ve kept going. -You’re a machine. -Have you run downhill like that before? -No. -No? -It’s sand, it’s cushioning. You’ve never done it in sand? Impressive. We need to invent a new race that is just downhill in the sand. -Yeah. -You’d obliterate everyone. You go while I sort my shoe out, I’ll catch you up. I had the slight feeling we had overdone it. We get past this dune, and then the ordeal resumes for Luca, like the second stage. He’s in Hell but he's loving it, at least I think so, I’m not sure, ask him. Sometimes, I can’t tell if it's a smile or a scowl on his face. It’s a mixture of both. In the distance there’s a kind of gorge appearing cliffs that explode upwards on both sides. and the sand in the middle of this gorge is really soft and with slope gradients that are the worst for Luca; some flat, slight uphills or slight downhills. Hey well done. Respect. Thanks. Respect. Well done Luca, that’s brilliant. -Come on Luca. -Well done Luca. -Thanks. -You give me goosebumps. Go mate. Go on Go, courage Luca. Thanks. Incredible. I’ve got to reach the finish. I want to finish and I won’t give up. whatever happens, I’m going to finish. I won’t throw in the towel, even if I’m outside the time limit, I’ll finish it. "Freed, delivered.." It’s your music. Freed, delivered... Freed, delivered, didn’t you hear it? It’s your music. In the distance we can see Mathieu and his brother Luca. This is not a mirage. The finish line. Shall we go, or not go? Come on, let’s go! Slowly, slowly. Hey slowly! He’s on fire! He’s killing me, he’s killing me! I need to catch him up. We are so proud to welcome you. Well done, well done. The finish line is pretty insignificant in the end. You need to use it as an aim, but never an end in itself, because if it is, you turn failure into something very negative and that's not what we're looking for. It’s more a question of self-discovery. Well done, well done. We can allow ourselves to dream crazy dreams, things that are much bigger than we think we can do, and Luca is a superb spokesperson for that, because he’s shown that it’s possible to go all the way. Finished! Thanks. It feels so good, it’s incredible. Especially in this setting, it’s beautiful. I’m pretty dead though. Destroyed, my legs are "destroyed". It's horrible. I didn’t think it was going to be so hard. I suffered a lot, but I did it. I’ve never given up on anything, and I wasn’t going to give up today. My little brother, I love you so much. I’m so proud of you and what you’ve achieved. You shone your light in this desert. Keep shining your light and you will light up everyone around you. It's brilliant, there are no words to describe these emotions. It’s exceeding your limits. You feel like you’ve passed a milestone. It shows you how important life actually is. It isn’t because you fall over once that you should stay on the ground. You must get back up, life isn’t over yet. It carries on and it can be even more beautiful than before. I fell down, I got back up and I got back up even stronger than I was before.