Life Isn’t A Sprint, It’s A Marathon

In September, 2011, Turia Pitt had entered herself into a 100km ultra-marathon race through Western Australia’s Kimberley region. In preparation for the race, she went through all the appropriate measures. Extensive field training, countless hours in the gym, and a strict diet. Little did Turia know, this race was going to change her life forever. During the race, Turia and five other competitors were trapped by a swift, unexpected fire that blazed around a remote gorge in the Kimberleys. Turia escaped with catastrophic burns covering 65% of her body; the medical team saw little hope for her survival. However, to this day, Turia inspires millions around the world with her story of survival. She has gone on to thrive in the ultimate story of triumph over adversity.

Turia Pitt was born on the 24th of July, 1987. Turia dabbled in modelling before graduating a double degree with honours in Mining and Science. This led to her pursuing her passion as a mining engineer in Kununurra at Argyle Diamond Mine. Turia was living her dream, working in an industry and position she loved and living together with her beloved partner. Life was good, until September, 2011. 

It wasn’t for several hours until medical staff arrived and were able to air-lift Turia to the nearby hospital. Doctors feared there wasn’t much that could be done to ensure survival. With little skin remaining, skin grafts wasn’t a viable option. Instead, Turia was put into an induced coma while her body fought against life-threatening infections. Turia needed skin tissue in order to recover from her injuries. To her dismay, there were none available in Australia, resulting in the direct importation from America. During her recovery, Turia lost her fingers, required a new nose, and underwent over 200 surgeries inside 6 gruelling months in hospital. During her 2 year recovery, Turia was forced to wear a compression mask in order to smooth out her scars, along with full body clothing to prevent exposure to the sun. With the story of Turia’s recovery and rehabilitation sweeping the nation, the country rallied and started a foundation to help support Turia during her lengthy 2 year recovery. 

In 2013, Turia released her first novel “Everything To Live For”. From here, Turia has become a motivational speaker, humanitarian and writer; being awarded the “Woman of the Year” in 2014. By 2016, Turia announced her biggest challenge since her recovery, her desire to compete in her first Ironman competition. Having completed the marathon in Australia with the time of 13:24:12, she competed in the Hawaiian Ironman World Championships 5 months later in Hawaii, with a time of 14:37:30.

“Dream big and don’t let anyone tell you that your goal is ‘impossible’. You are 100% capable of achieving even your biggest, craziest dreams”

Her remarkable recovery and marathon success in 2016 inspired the world, proving that with the right mindset – despite life-changing adversity – you can achieve anything. 

In 2017 and 2020, Turia brought two boys into the world with her fiance Michael. Turia continues to work as an ambassador for Interplast Australia and New Zealand, donating her time to host events, fundraisers, and promote the work done. To this day, she’s helped raise over $1m in donations and $3m in awareness.