Jack Scott, the winner of the ‘UK’s most brutal running race’, has credited the sport with helping him overcome his six-year gambling addiction. Scott’s addiction began in his late teens when he started gambling on football, horses, and greyhounds during rowdy weekends in his hometown of Stone, Staffordshire. By his early 20s, he had become uncontrollably hooked, spending almost his entire wage within hours of getting paid. Even buying a house with his long-term partner failed to curb the compulsion. Scott turned to running as a form of self-punishment and a mask for his addiction.
Scott’s Road to Damascus moment came almost five years ago when he won and broke a record for the 180-mile Offa’s Dyke Path, and he realised he wanted to change. He registered with Gamstop, a free self-exclusion service that bars members from online gambling sites. He also worked with a psychologist to turn the dark force he once fed with betting slips into a running super fuel. Since then, Scott has landed a sponsorship deal with British all-terrain sports brand Inov-8.
Scott has won this year’s Montane Spine Race, finishing the 268-mile Pennine Way from Derbyshire to the Scottish borders in brutal winter conditions in 72 hours and 55 minutes, smashing the course record by 10 hours. Running through hallucinations through sleep-deprivation, he convinced himself his closest rival was breathing down his neck, despite having opened a 17-mile gap between them.
Scott encourages those struggling to break free of an addiction to rely on the people closest to them and to be kind to themselves and not be afraid to fail. He recommends closing in their social circle, even if it means leaving harmful friendships behind. “Now, I’m all that and more to people – and that’s the most important thing in my life right now,” he said.
For help with gambling addiction, contact the national helpline – run by Gamcare – on 0808 8020 133 or register with Gamstop
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