At the young age of 17, Mario Rui turned to sports after a motorbike accident that changed his life. He took to Muay Thai or Thai boxing and for the next 15 years travelled the globe and fought with some of the top names in Thai boxing in Thailand, Spain, and Holland. It was the action/sport film Kickboxer which drew Mario as a child to the world of Thai boxing. Kickboxer is a 1989 American martial arts film starring Jean-Claude Van Damme. Mario’s
dream finally took shape in 2016 when he found himself in the ring.
Muay Thai is referred to as “The Art of Eight Limbs”; and using eight points of contact the body mimics weapons of war. The hands become the sword and dagger; the shins and forearms hardened in training to act as armor against blows, and the elbow to fell opponents like a heavy mace or hammer; the legs and knees become the axe and staff. The body operates as one unit. The knees and elbows constantly searching and testing for an opening while grappling and trying to spin an enemy to the ground for the kill. During this time, Mario discovered the joy and passion of mountain running. Soon he was running the Ultra Trails of Andorra and took part in the Mountain Competition in the Pyrenees. He switched from Thai boxing to running long distance and found himself among the top five mountain runners in Andorra, a tiny, independent principality situated between France and Spain in the Pyrenees mountains.
Today he is known for his skills in running in the high elevated and rocky terrains. His skills were put to the test in Scotland’s International Skyline Mountain Championships, known to be the one of the toughest races in the world. Mario ranked among the top 20 after having competed with some of the best in the field.
Mario has now turned his attention to short distance running on track. He has breasted the tape in races in Spain, Andorra and the United Kingdom. He is preparing for future races in America, Nepal in the Himalayas, France, Scotland in the Moors and Portugal. He competes all over the globe and has come first place in races in Scotland.
Mario is now being trained by a coach from the Sporting Clube de Braga, his home in Portugal growing up. He is also training with a club in Scotland (Central Athletic Club) twice a week where he shares his running skills and getting to know the community of athletes in
Scotland. His next big dream is to compete in the Masters World Championship.
Mario is a man of compassion and courage with love for all animals which has inspired him to run for AnimalK and carry our message of love and care for all living being across the globe.
