Sean Conway is an adventurer, extreme endurance athlete and inspirational speaker. Sean has achieved the holy grail of endurance, what Sean likes to call the 3 Fs: a world’s first, the world’s furthest and the world’s fastest. Now he holds the world-record for the most full distance triathlons too.
Sean draws on hard-won experience when he shares his story about how a former corporate photographer became an inspiring, world-record setting, endurance adventurer.
Sean is a hugely popular endurance athlete known for pushing his limits. During the covid pandemic in 2021, Sean launched the 496 Challenge, running each day during the month creating a popular short film about his challenge. Sean thought ‘outside the box’ when larger adventures were postponed, inspiring many others to set their own challenges, small and large. Sean ran 15 marathons in 15 British National Parks on 15 days (2021) and completed a triathlon around the edge of Wales (2022).
Although now well-known for his quirky take on endurance sports and adventures, Sean’s earlier life may surprise many. Sean came to the UK in 2002 with just £100 in his wallet and started working in Cambridge cutting 12,000 cabbages a day. Later, having made his living as a photographer, Sean sold his business for £1 knowing he had to take a risk and change his life and its purpose. He found he had a talent for setting and reaching outrageous adventure goals. As Sean would put it, he found his beard.
Sean is passionate about encouraging others to take on a challenge and live life more adventurously. He tailors each talk and his messages are built around his own unique perspective on courage, resilience and challenge. Sean knows what it takes to tackle seemingly impossible goals, develop resilience when it gets tough and stay motivated for the long haul despite disappointment, injury and set-backs.
Sean’s talks are memorable and entertaining. He delivers powerful messages around setting outrageous goals, coping with setbacks, maintaining a positive attitude and staying motivated when it gets tough, all the while using social media to communicate the realities of his extreme adventures with candid humour. Sean’s talks chart the highs and lows, sharing the successes and the set-backs of his adventures to inspire us to believe we can succeed against the odds.
- Iron102: In 2023, Sean achieved 102 consecutive full distance triathlons, a new world-record. Sean swam 2.5 miles, cycled 112 miles and then put on his running shoes to complete a marathon run of 26.2 miles each day. It was tough but Sean knew he was helping raise funds for a charity close to his heart: True Venture. The Foundation inspires and supports children and young athletes by improving access opportunities through sport so they can connect with and reach their potential.
- Fastest: In 2018, Sean became the fastest person to cycle the 4000 miles across Europe from Portugal to Russia, solo and unsupported. He completed this in 24 days 18 hours and 39 minutes.
- Furthest Ultra Triathlon: In 2016, Sean completed a self-supported continuous Ultra Triathlon around the coast of Britain. Sean cycled 3,350 miles, ran 800 miles and swam from Brighton to Lulworth Cove to complete the coastal route. (This is approximately the distance from London to Dehli). Discovery Channel followed Sean’s incredible challenge to produce a three-part TV series: On the Edge as he finished the world’s longest ultra triathlon.
- First Person to Swim the Length of Britain: In 2015, Sean became the first person to complete the Great British Triathlon: cycling, swimming and running the length of Britain from Land’s End to John O’Groats. The swim was considered impossible, too dangerous and had never even been attempted. With an adventure documentary by Discovery TV and considerable media interest, Sean and his trademark beard had arrived.
