Richard Parks facts for kids

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Richard Parks

Birth name	Richard David Parks
Date of birth	(1977-08-14) 14 August 1977 (age 47)
Place of birth	Pontypridd, Wales
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	233 lb (106 kg)
School	Rougemont School Monmouth School
Rugby union career
Position(s) Back row Senior career Years Team Apps (Points) 1996–1998 1999–2003 2003–2004 2004–2006 2006–2007 2007–2009 Newport Pontypridd Celtic Warriors Leeds Tykes Perpignan Dragons 62 97 24 45 11 30 (10) (0) (0) (10) (0) (5) National team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) 2002–2003 Wales 4 (0)

Richard David Parks (born on August 14, 1977) is a famous Welsh athlete. He used to be a professional rugby union player for Wales. After retiring from rugby, he became an extreme endurance athlete and a television presenter.

Richard played for several rugby teams during his 13-year career. These included Newport RFC, Pontypridd RFC, Celtic Warriors, Leeds Tykes, Perpignan, and Newport Gwent Dragons. In May 2009, he had to stop playing rugby because of a serious shoulder injury.

Early Life and Rugby Beginnings

Richard Parks was born in Pontypridd, Wales. His mother, Lee, was from Jamaica, and his father, Derek, was Welsh. Richard grew up in Newport and went to Rougemont School and Monmouth School.

Richard started playing rugby when he was 11 years old at Rougemont School. He quickly became a strong player, usually playing as a flanker. He was chosen to play for Welsh Schools at the under-18 level. After a short time with Newport youth, he spent a year in South Africa in 1996. He played for the first team at Michaelhouse, a boarding school in Durban.

While in South Africa, Richard was invited to join the Natal Under-19s academy. However, he wanted to play for Wales. So, he decided to return home and sign his first professional rugby contract with Newport Rugby Football Club.

Playing for Newport RFC

In his first year with Newport RFC (1996–97), Richard was chosen to play for the Welsh sevens team in Tokyo, Japan. The next year, he was asked to train with the main Welsh team. At the end of the 1997–98 season, his club voted him the most promising player of the year. He won the Arthur Boucher Award.

Richard's third season with Newport RFC was difficult because of an injury. He broke a bone in his spine and missed most of the season. Because it took a long time to get better, Newport RFC ended his contract. He had played 62 games for them. He finished that season playing rugby for Cardiff Meds university team.

Joining Pontypridd and Playing for Wales

After leaving Newport, Richard signed with Pontypridd RFC. In 2001, he played for the Welsh Sevens in the 2001 Rugby World Cup Sevens in Argentina. In 2002, Pontypridd won the Principality Cup. They also reached the Parker Pen Shield final but lost closely to Sale Sharks.

Many players from the Pontypridd team, including Richard, were chosen to play for Wales on a tour to South Africa. On June 8, 2002, he played his first full international game for Wales. He came on as a substitute in a match against South Africa in Bloemfontein. He was the 1001st player to represent Wales.

The next season, Richard played his second game for Wales against Fiji. He stayed in the Welsh squad for his final season at Pontypridd. He was part of the 6 Nations squad but did not play in any matches. In the summer of 2003, he was selected for the first World Cup squad. He played warm-up games against Scotland and Ireland. However, he was not chosen for the final World Cup team that went to Australia.

Moving to Regional Teams

In 2003, Welsh rugby changed, and new regional teams were created. Richard joined one of these new teams, the Celtic Warriors. He played the entire 2003–04 season out of his usual position. He played as number 8 because other players were injured. He played 19 games for them.

After only one season, the Celtic Warriors team closed down. Richard then joined Leeds Tykes, where the Welsh head coach Phil Davies was working.

Playing for Leeds and Perpignan

Richard had a tough start to the 2004–05 season at Leeds because of an injury. But he soon became a very important player for the team. Sometimes, he was even named vice-captain.

In early 2005, Leeds was at the bottom of the Zurich Premiership due to many injured players. Despite facing relegation, they reached their first ever Powergen Cup final in 2005. They beat Bath 20–12 at Twickenham to win their first trophy.

After winning the cup, they won five games in a row and avoided being relegated. They finished the season in eighth place. The next season, Leeds lost their first eight games in different competitions. They were relegated at the end of the season. Richard then signed with USA Perpignan in France for the 2006–07 season. However, he did not get to play much there. So, he returned to Wales for the 2007–08 season to play for the Newport Gwent Dragons.

Time with Newport Gwent Dragons

Richard tore his knee ligaments in a game against Cardiff Blues on Boxing Day. This was the start of many injuries that eventually made him retire from rugby. Early in his second season with the Dragons, Richard hurt his shoulder during a tackle. He kept playing, then had surgery over Christmas to fix the injury. He returned to play at the start of the new year, but his shoulder problem came back.

In May 2009, doctors told him the damage to his shoulder could not be fixed. After his second shoulder operation that year, he was advised not to play rugby anymore. He had played 30 games for the Dragons. He retired from rugby on May 26, 2009, when he was 31 years old.

From Rugby to Extreme Expeditions

After retiring from rugby, Richard Parks decided to take on a huge challenge. He aimed to climb the highest mountain on each of the world's seven continents. He also wanted to reach the Three Poles Challenge (North Pole, South Pole, and Mount Everest) all within seven months. He called this the "737 Challenge."

On December 12, 2010, Richard left Cardiff. This was exactly 100 years after the famous Terra Nova Expedition led by Robert Falcon Scott left the same city. Olympic rower Steve Williams and nurse Janet Suart joined him for parts of his 737 Challenge.

Completing the 737 Challenge

Richard completed each part of his 737 Challenge on these dates:

• Leg 1: The South Pole – December 27, 2010
• Leg 2: Mount Vinson (Antarctica's highest mountain) – January 8, 2011
• Leg 3: Aconcagua (South America's highest mountain) – February 5, 2011
• Leg 4: Kilimanjaro (Africa's highest mountain) – February 27, 2011
• Leg 5: Carstensz Pyramid (Oceania's highest mountain) – March 15, 2011
• Leg 6: The North Pole – April 11, 2011
• Leg 7: Everest (Asia's highest mountain) – May 25, 2011
• Leg 8: Denali (North America's highest mountain) – June 30, 2011
• Leg 9: Elbrus (Europe's highest mountain) – July 12, 2011

He finished the entire challenge on July 12, 2011. It took him six months and 11 days.

Solo Journey to the South Pole

In December 2012, Richard tried to ski alone and without help to the South Pole. He started from Hercules Inlet on the coast of Antarctica. In January, he had to stop because he was not well and the weather was very bad.

He went back to Antarctica at the end of 2013. On January 4, 2014, he successfully completed his solo and unassisted journey to the South Pole. He covered 1,150 kilometers (715 miles) in 29 days, 19 hours, and 24 minutes. This was the fastest solo journey for a Briton.

Television Documentaries

Richard Parks' 737 Challenge was filmed for a BBC Cymru Wales documentary series called "Richard Parks – Conquering the World." It was shown in three parts starting in July 2011. The documentary showed his emotional and inspiring journey as he reached seven summits and three poles in seven months.

In 2014, Richard's first national TV series was shown on Channel 5. It followed a year of his training and completing endurance races. It also showed his solo ski trip to the South Pole.

In 2016, two more documentaries featuring Richard were released. A three-part series for BBC One Wales and BBC Two, called "Extreme Wales with Richard Parks," came out in September. "Richard Parks on Everest," a 60-minute documentary, was broadcast in October. It followed his progress earlier that year on Project Everest Cynllun.

Awards and Achievements

Richard Parks has received many awards for his achievements:

• 2005 – Won the Powergen Cup/Anglo-Welsh Cup title with Leeds Tykes.
• 2012 – Won the Just Giving Celebrity Fundraiser of the year award.
• 2012 – Received the Rugby Writers' Club Special Award. Famous rugby figures like Phil Vickery and Sir Clive Woodward had received this award before.
• 2012 – Awarded The 'Chancellors Medal' by the University of Glamorgan.
• 2012 – Awarded an Honorary Fellowship by the University of Wales.
• 2012 – Chosen to carry the Olympic Torch.
• 2012 – Named in the Business Insider's top 100 most influential people in Wales.
• 2012 – Invited to meet the Queen at Buckingham Palace.
• 2012 – Won a national CIM Marketing Excellence Award for SME (Small and Medium-sized Enterprise) of the year. This was for his 737 Challenge design partner, Limegreentangerine.
• 2013 – Awarded an Honorary Fellowship by Cardiff University.
• 2018 – Included in a list of 100 Brilliant, Black and Welsh people during Black History Month in the United Kingdom.