FIVE super-fit Gurkha soldiers completed one of the world’s toughest sporting challenges in North Yorkshire this weekend.

About 3,000 racers took part in the Spartan Race on Sunday – a 5km, cross-country event held at Ellington Banks in Ripon, North Yorkshire, a training area for Army cadets normally used by tanks with hilly terrain, deep potholes and craters.

The servicemen, all members of Gurkha Company, stationed at Catterick Garrison competed under their team name The Gurkha Warriors.

Featuring 15 military-style obstacles, Spartan races are designed to bring out the inner warrior in racers.

Racers tackled 15-foot rope climbs, slippery seven-foot ramp scaling, spear target-throwing, carrying sandbags up steep hills and barbed-wire mud crawls.

To finish, runners had to scale 25-foot-high cargo nets and leap through fire across blazing logs.

The Gurkhas, who won an ovation from the crowds when they finished the course in one hour, were Corporal Nishan Rai, 24, Lieutenant Corporal Prabin Jabegu, 26, Private Navin Rai, 27, LCpl Mukum Hembya, 23, and team captain, LCpl Amar Gurung, 25.

LCpl Gurung said: “We trained especially hard for this event and it turned out to be both very challenging and a lot of fun too.

“Staying fit and healthy is good for everyone whether they are from the military or civilians. It was very muddy out there today and we got wet but we all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves."

Dan Tuffnell, Spartan Race UK’s director, said: “These Gurkha soldiers proved an inspiration to us all and I'm delighted that our Spartan race threw them a few surprises to test their fitness even further.”