Charlie Engle

Charlie Engle is a recovering addict, acclaimed ultrarunner, public speaker, author of Running Man: A Memoir, and star of Running the Sahara, a documentary film produced and narrated by Matt Damon, chronicling Engle’s record-breaking 4,500-mile run across the Sahara Desert while raising millions of dollars for charity.
While his athletic feats are legendary, Charlie considers his most significant milestone to be his 34 years of continuous sobriety. Since finding recovery in 1992, he has become a leading voice in the global addiction recovery community, utilizing his platform to demonstrate that the discipline required for elite endurance sports is a direct mirror of the “one step at a time” philosophy of long-term recovery.
Starting in January 2027, Charlie will take on his next challenge: an expedition from the lowest point on earth, the depths of the Dead Sea, to its highest point — swimming, free diving, running, paddling, mountain biking and climbing his way to the summit of Mount Everest.
Charlie has been featured in The New York Times, Men’s Journal, Outside, National Geographic Weekend, Oxford American, Runners World, The Huffington Post, PBS's Need to Know, NBC's Rock Center with Brian Williams, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and NPR's All Things Considered, along with countless other news and media outlets. He currently serves as Recovery Director and Spokesperson for Anonymous Health.