Spreading hope without ceasing is Marc Naumann’s motto in life. Naumman is an ordained pastor in the Seventh-day Adventist Church and the fastest pastor in Europe in his age group among the triathlon athletes who practice this sport as a hobby. A triathlon is a competition in which three different disciplines, namely swimming, cycling, and running, must be completed in succession to reach the finish line.

On his personal website,  Naumann reports that since his youth it has been his lifelong sporting dream to complete a triathlon at an official event. At 40 years old, he made this dream come true for the first time on the Olympic distance (1.5 kilometers [0.9 mile] swimming, 40 kilometers [25 miles] cycling, and 10 kilometers [6 miles] running).

The trigger, Naumman said, was an unexpected stay in the emergency room of a university hospital. With his loss of consciousness, hyperventilation, dehydration, and several hours of blindness, Marc gave the specialists a mystery on the diagnostic path. His body system had shut down to a stand-by state to protect him from more damage.

From this point on, it was clear to him that his understanding of values had to change fundamentally in terms of his work-life integration. Naumman followed the medical and therapeutic instructions and fulfilled his sporting dream: to participate in a triathlon event and do good by spreading hope, “running” for a healthy and mindful life.

In June 2017, Naumann took part in his first Olympic European Championships in Kitzbühel, Austria, as a nominated athlete of the German Age Group National Team (DTU). Five years later, after the coronavirus pandemic, he made his comeback at the home European Championships in Munich, Germany, on the sprint distance. Since then, he has been known in the triathlon scene as “The Pastor.”

After achieving the major goal of not only being the fastest pastor in Europe in his age group but also qualifying for the world championships on the sprint distance in Hamburg on July 14, 2023, Naumann knows exactly what he is doing this for. As a sports ambassador for the Christian television station Hope TV, he wants to spread hope without ceasing and inspire people to lead a fulfilled and hopeful life through the hope only God can offer.

About Marc Naumann

Marc Naumann has been working in Alsbach-Hähnlein, near Darmstadt, since 2018, as a team leader for fundraising and partnerships at Hope Media Europe, a media center of the Adventist Church. As a board member of the Hope Media Europe Foundation, he is committed to a wholistic promotion of health. Previously, he was pastor and head of the evangelism and church planting department of the Adventist Church in Austria for 13 years.

The original version of this story was posted by Adventistische Pressedienst.