Ultra-endurance athlete Natalie Dau set herself one of her most demanding challenges yet with Project 1000, a 1,000km solo run from Thailand to Singapore designed to raise awareness and support opportunities for women and girls through sport.
Dau, who has called Singapore home for more than two decades, began the journey in Hat Yai, Thailand. The route took her down the length of Malaysia before reaching Singapore, where she completed the final section of the challenge.
The 52-year-old planned to cover the equivalent of two marathons each day over 12 days. The final stage on June 5, Global Running Day, took her across Singapore, beginning in Woodlands before finishing at The Westin Singapore. The challenge was also intended to set records for the fastest crossing of Peninsular Malaysia on foot and the fastest 1,000km Thailand-Singapore ultramarathon.
For Dau, the run was about more than endurance. She wanted to use her sport to create greater opportunities for girls who might not otherwise have access to organised physical activity.
Project 1000 supported global charity GRLS, which works to empower women and girls through sport and exercise. Dau also planned to present scholarships to girls at five schools in Thailand along the route and work with social enterprise Luuna to distribute menstrual products, helping to encourage conversations around menstruation and participation in sport.
The idea grew from Dau’s desire to connect her endurance career with a broader social purpose. After completing multiple marathons and ultramarathons, she said she wanted to find a way to use her running to contribute to causes she cared about.
Dau’s own ultra-running career began in 2019, when she entered her first ultramarathon in Singapore. Despite limited preparation and problems with fuelling, she went on to win the race. She has since recorded 10 ultra victories, finishing either first overall or as the first woman across the line. Her races have included distances of up to 200km.
Preparing for Project 1000 required a significant increase in her training. Dau typically runs six days a week, covering between 100km and 150km, alongside strength workouts. In the lead-up to the challenge, she introduced double-run days to prepare for the physical and mental demands of running again each afternoon.
She also trained without headphones during some long runs to become more comfortable with spending extended periods alone with her thoughts. Dau said the mental aspect would be particularly important when fatigue and difficult moments inevitably set in.
The challenge was not without risks. Dau identified potential injuries, stomach problems and encounters with wild dogs among her concerns, while acknowledging that exhaustion and discomfort would be part of the experience.
Rather than trying to control every aspect of the journey, she adopted a simple approach: focus on what could be controlled and accept the uncertainty of the route.
Project 1000 ultimately reflected Dau’s belief that endurance sport can be used for more than competition. By combining an extreme physical challenge with fundraising, scholarships and initiatives supporting women and girls, she sought to turn her running into a platform for wider social impact.
