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Factual: Life Stories

True stories of ordinary people and the extraordinary events that have shaped their lives

True stories of ordinary people and the extraordinary events that have shaped their lives.

Outlook: Lost in the Sahara Desert

Mauro Prosperi

10/09/2014

Lost in the Sahara Desert

BBC World Service - Outlook, Lost in the Sahara Desert

Mauro Prosperi is a marathon runner who got lost in the Sahara desert

Marathon runner Mauro Prosperi is nicknamed the "Robinson Crusoe of the Sahara".  In 1994 he got lost in a sandstorm in the desert and survived nine days by eating raw bats.

They call him the Robinson Crusoe of the Sahara.  Mauro Prosperi is an Italian pentathlete who gained a gold medal at the Olympic games in Los Angeles in 1984. Ten years later, he was running the Marathon des Sables in the Sahara desert when he got lost in a sandstorm. He survived nine days, eating raw bats and snakes. 

It's 100 years since the outbreak of the First World War, and here on the BBC, we're marking the centenary with a series called, "Beyond the Trenches".  As part of that series, we bring you untold stories from around the world.  Today we hear from Mexico.

Also, Julie Andersen is a diver who claims to dance with sharks. She sold her successful business and set up a charity that aims to change public opinion about one of the world's most feared creatures - but it's not an easy task. 

Legendary jazz singer Tony Bennett has had a career lasting more than 60 years. You might remember his hits, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" and "The Good Life".    Now 88, he's touring around the world and has been duetting with some of contemporary music's biggest stars, including Lady Gaga.  

Fred Syversen, a daredevil skier from Norway, tells us about how he accidentally broke a world record by skiing off a 107m cliff in the Swiss Alps. 

Picture: Italian ultra-marathon runner Mauro Prospero

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