On January 11, 2026, the Winter Spine Race organization made an announcement on social media about one of the participants in the 108-mile Winter Spine Challenger South race: “Sarah Porter, who has been fundraising for charity … has now been withdrawn from the race due to safety concerns.” Porter, from the U.K., was pulled from the course on the recommendation of the race director Phil Hayday-Brown after only 30 miles of racing when the organization became aware of death threats toward her.
Sarah Porter was pulled from the 2026 Winter Spine Challenger South race after safety threats. Photo courtesy of Sarah Porter.
When contacted, the race organization explained, “On Saturday the 10th we made the difficult decision to remove one of our participants from the race following a personal safety threat, we have been working with all the relevant authorities and believe there is no wider threat to other participants on the course. We understand that this is disappointing for the runner in question, but the safety of all our participants is always our primary concern.”
Fundraising for Afghan Women
Porter was using the race as a fundraiser for supporting young women in Afghanistan, a cause she has been involved with for a long time. Outside of running, Porter is the founder and CEO of InspiredMinds, an AI technology company that lobbies for technology to be used in a positive, democratic way in low- to middle-income countries. In 2017, as part of her work, she was introduced to the all-girl Afghan robotics team that was initially unable to compete at a global robotics competition in the U.S. after being denied visas. Through Porter’s work, the young women were eventually able to travel and compete. Porter stayed in touch with these women, and before the fall of Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, to the Taliban in 2021, became instrumental in evacuating them, their families, and friends to safety. Her work expanded from there, and she’s currently involved in helping women in war-torn countries beyond Afghanistan.
Porter is still pretty new to ultrarunning, having only been racing for the past 18 months. And while running may be new, taking precautions to protect herself is now relatively standard for her. Unfortunately, because of her work in supporting these women and other oppressed groups, threats against her safety regularly happen. However, this is the first time she’s dealt with them in the context of a race.
Sarah Porter on the 2026 Winter Spine Challenger South race course before being pulled from the race. Photo courtesy of Sarah Porter.
The decision to use the Winter Spine Challenger South race as a fundraiser was made with an abundance of caution and advanced planning to ensure safety. She has a security team and also had a bodyguard nearby at all times along the course. Porter worked closely with race director Hayday-Brown ahead of the event, and highlights that he really wanted to support her in racing. When she first approached him, she said, “I’ve seen that this is called ‘Britain’s most brutal race’ and given the brutality that’s happening to women around the world and the work that we do, it feels so appropriate.” She observed that it drew many parallels to the pain, endurance, and resilience that women are suffering under oppression. Porter is quick to point out that you cannot ever compare something to the extent of what those women experience, but for a fundraiser, it felt like a good fit.
Porter is disappointed at not being able to finish the race. When she received the call from Hayday-Brown telling her that they needed to get her off the course, Porter remembers it only as a blur, high on caffeine and reeling from the tough conditions she’d endured so far. Porter understands that had she kept a lower profile, she may have been able to finish the race without threats, but she also knows that in order to get the media attention and support the fundraiser deserved, she had to share her attempt publicly, and as such, make herself vulnerable to threats.
Looking Forward
A few days later, Porter is recovering from the experience, both mentally and physically, but she says it hasn’t shaken her. While Porter may not have had the chance to finish the Winter Spine Challenger South race, she doesn’t plan to stop her fundraising efforts for Afghan women. She also doesn’t plan to let them get in the way of her bigger goals.
She has more trail and mountain running races coming up this year and something to show: “I really have to go out there now, not just for myself, but also for the girls that I’m supporting, and finish something big, and I’m not going to stop until I do that now. I’m hell-bent on it.”
Sarah Porter bundled against the elements at the 2026 Winter Spine Challenger South race. Photo courtesy of Sarah Porter.
And she passionately wants more people to speak out and fight for the many injustices in the world: “You can, as an individual, have a huge effect. You just need to know where you stand and be prepared to stand up and fight for it.”
You can donate to Porter’s fundraiser here.
