In March 2021, I will row across the Atlantic Ocean with four others, a grueling 6,000km challenge that will push mind and body to the limit. Ralph Tuijn is leading the rowing trip and Team EU. He has an extensive history of adventure sports.

The 49-year old started undertaking longer biking rides around his home country Netherlands and the surrounding countries in the early 90s.

His first rowing experience came in 1994 when he participated in a 12-man team crossing of the North Sea, a feat achieved in 42 hours. That year was also when he climbed his first mountains, two of the highest peaks in Norway and Mont Blanc in France.

Between 1996 and 1997, he cycled 24,000km through Europe and Asia part from doing a winter bike trip in the Himalayas at temperatures of -40 degrees Celsius. He followed up a year later with another 15,600km trip from the Netherlands to Russia.

In 2001, Ralph completed a solo winter crossing of the Lena river (the longest completely frozen river in the world) using a specially designed bicycle and polar slide, which were demolished by the extremely bad ice conditions.

Various bike and other adventures followed until in 2006 when he rowed across the Atlantic Ocean together with brother Mike from the Canary Island, La Gomera to Curacao, a total of 5500 km in 88 days.

A year later, he went solo and rowed across the Pacific from Callao (Peru) via Atafu and Fiji to Rabaul (Papua New Guinea), a staggering 19,500 km in 281 days. This is the longest solo rowing trip in history.

More biking followed, including the Fairwater Bike Challenge with a world record for fastest human powered crossing of Africa (Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa), 11,000km.

In 2012, Ralph rowed across the Indian Ocean from Carnarvon, Australia to the Cocos Islands (5,300km) in 73 days. He accumulated ore than 13,000 of rowing in various expeditions over the net years.

In 2015, he skippered an Atlantic row crossing of a five-person team from Portugal to Trinidad (6,500km) in 52 days and 10 hours. The team claimed two world records for fastest crossing from Europe to South America and the first woman on board to complete this crossing.

Ralph participated in a summer running expedition through the heart of Australia in 2016, completing 1,500km from Darwin to Alise Springs in 24 days.

In 2017, Ralph led an Atlantic crossing as skipper of a four-person team from Portugal to French Guyana (6,000km) in 48 days, 4 hours and 53 minutes with two world records for fastest crossing from Europe to South America and the youngest rower on board to complete this crossing.

Another Atlantic row was done in 2018 from Portugal to Trinidad (6,000km in 65 days, five world records), and the same route was taken in 2019 (6,000km in 50 days, five world records). In the same year, he rowed solo from Lanzarote, Canary Islands to Antiqua (4,700km in 55 days).

In 2020, he skippered a five-person team from Portugal to Trinidad (6,000km) in 51 days (five world records, including first blind rower to cross from Europe to S America).

In total, he has rowed more than 60,000km across oceans and cycled more than 100,000km around the world.