The Man Who Vanished in front of 134 People in Sahara part 1

The Sahara Desert—another name for death—where in 1994, a man suddenly vanishes from among 134 people while running a marathon. Neither his body nor any trace of him is found. Then, 9 days later, he emerges from an unknown place across the border. This is the story of Italian police officer Mauro Prosperi, whom even death refused to accept.

Welcome back to story. This spine-chilling story belongs to Mauro Prosperi, a police officer from Italy who was deeply passionate about the Pentathlon. This is a sport that makes a person an expert in skills like fencing, swimming, horse riding, pistol shooting, and running. This passion for the pentathlon was ignited during his duty in the Italian National Police, and it was this training that instilled in him the spirit of hard work and never giving up.

One day, his friend Giovanni Manzo told him about the Marathon des Sables held in the Sahara Desert. It is considered one of the toughest races in the world. You can judge the terror of this race by the fact that one has to cover a distance of 251 km alone, and there are only 7 days to achieve this feat. The most dangerous part is that throughout the race, the runner must carry their own food, cooking gear, clothes, and all necessities in a backpack. The organizers provide only water at each checkpoint and, in some cases, a tent for shelter at night.

Mauro Prosperi and his friend Manzo both decided to participate. As training, they started running 40 km daily and practiced reducing their water intake. On April 10, 1994, when Prosperi was 38 years old, this ultra-marathon began from Foum Zguid, a remote settlement in Morocco. This is an area in the Tata province of southeastern Morocco where the Sahara begins with all its majesty.

There were a total of 134 competitors, including Prosperi and Manzo. The first three days went as expected. Together, they successfully covered 96 km. The path was extremely difficult—sometimes the hard surface of salt lakes, sometimes rocky cliffs, and sand dunes that could hide the eyes. They would start running early in the morning during the cool hours. The desert was so vast that every participant would drift apart and run completely alone. The rule was to find the way yourself and reach the next checkpoint. Everyone had a survival kit containing a compass and a flare gun to signal in case they got lost.

The race had six stages in total. On April 14, 1994, Prosperi and his friend entered the fourth stage. This was the longest and most difficult phase of the ultra-marathon because 85 km had to be covered in just 2 days. It was afternoon; the sun was raining fire, and the temperature had reached 46°C. Prosperi increased his pace, leaving his friend Manzo behind, and moved forward alone.

At that point, Prosperi saw a "dust devil" forming in front of him, and within moments, a strong wind started blowing. After running 32 km, when the wind intensified, Prosperi changed his path slightly and climbed a sand dune to avoid the direct impact of the wind. But these winds had now taken the form of a terrifying sandstorm.

During this condition, Prosperi thought that if he stopped, he would be buried alive in the sandstorm. He kept running through the storm. He thought he saw trail markings, but in reality, it was just his hallucination. Soon, the markings vanished, and he drifted miles away from the other runners. As evening fell and darkness approached, no checkpoint was visible. That’s when Prosperi realized he was completely lost.

Because of the storm, his skin had turned red, his nose was bleeding, and his throat had become as dry as a thorn due to the constant inhalation of sand. Desperate, he spent that night by a bush, covering his face with a towel, hoping that tomorrow's sun would show a new path.

The morning of the fifth day was much better. Prosperi ran continuously for the next 4 hours. When he climbed a massive sand dune and looked around, he was shocked. No path, no sign. As far as the eye could see, there were only sand dunes. By this time, Prosperi's water was nearly gone. To maintain hydration, he was left with only one option: he was forced to start recycling and drinking his own liquid waste.