Army veteran Sally Orange completes world's highest marathon dressed as a lemon
Army veteran Sally Orange MBE has completed the world's highest marathon, the Everest Marathon, dressed as a lemon.
She is no stranger to food-themed endurance challenges – she holds the Guinness World Record as the only person to complete a marathon while wearing a fruit costume on every continent.
Last year also saw her dressed up as a cracker and attempting to run the fastest marathon as a savoury food item.
The former Army physiotherapist, 50, took on the international high-altitude sports event in her distinctive lemon costume, which she said embodies the phrase "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade".
Major (Ret'd) Orange joined the Royal Army Medical Corps in 1998 and completed 22 years of service as a Physiotherapy Officer.
Playing on her surname, she runs as pieces of fruit, but has said her outfits also help start conversations and break the stigma surrounding mental health.
She said she wants to "literally shout from the top of the world about the importance of looking after your mental health".
The Afghanistan veteran has run more than 80 marathons, completed eight full Ironman triathlons and was made an MBE for her efforts in 2023.
Her latest marathon attempt started at Mount Everest base camp, and she has been documenting her journey on her Instagram page.
"I've never had a marathon where getting to the start line takes so much," she said.
"But everybody looks out for each other. Ultimately, we're all in it together."
Maj Orange is fundraising for the Samaritans and the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme.
As a mental health campaigner, she uses her challenges to raise awareness of the importance of mental health support.
She said: "I've suffered really quite severely with my mental health, with depression and anxiety, and it got to the point where I wanted to take my life.
"I just felt like the biggest burden and couldn't see a place in the world for me.
"I don't want anyone else to ever get to that point, which is the reason for me wanting to make sure that other people get help sooner than I did.
"Managing your mental health or taking on a challenge is recognising that it doesn't happen overnight. It's setting a goal and then breaking that goal down into much smaller steps.
"It doesn’t have to be Everest, for some people that would be the worst, but it's finding out what their Everest is."
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