Britain’s Fittest Farmer 2024: Winners revealed

Forty agricultural athletes battled it out for one of four top slots in the Britain’s Fittest Farmer finals on 15 September.

Contestants were tested on mental health awareness and their ability to motivate others before engaging in a series of physical challenges.

See also: Britain’s Fittest Farmer 2024: Meet this year’s finalists

Competition organiser and host Tom Kemp said this year’s finalists were “bigger, stronger, and faster” than in previous years.

The BFF competition, a Farmers Weekly initiative, aims to promote the benefits of strong physical and mental health in the agricultural industry. Each winner receives a £1,000 prize.

This seventh edition of the competition continues attracted a mix of returning participants and newcomers, showcasing the growing fitness culture within farming.

Women under 40s 

Emily Ashford, a retired professional rower who has represented Team GB internationally, added the title of Britain’s Fittest Farmer to her already impressive achievements by winning the Women Under 40s category.

Competing against strong contenders including runner-up Emily Forsyth from Dumfries and Carmarthenshire’s Liz Harries, the 32-year-old took home the victory while also shining a light on an important issue – the emotional toll of bovine TB on farmers.

Having previously worked in the Metropolitan Police, Emily is now working full-time on her family’s organic dairy, beef, and sheep farm in South Devon.

Over the past two years, her farm has lost over 100 cows to bovine TB, a loss that has deeply affected her. Her goal in competing in the BFF competition was to raise awareness about the mental health struggles farmers face when dealing with the devastating disease.

Emily explained that the impact of losing cows to bovine TB goes beyond numbers. “I can tell you every single name of those cows,” she said, detailing how connected farmers are to their livestock.

She said the constant loss, with tests every 60 days leading to the removal of more cows, has been heartbreaking. It affected not just her own mental health, but also the wellbeing of her family and friends.

Motivated by her experiences, Emily is in the process of establishing a mental health charity aimed at supporting farmers who endure the trauma of TB breakdowns.

She sees a significant gap in the current support network for these farmers, and hopes to help fill it with her initiative.

In addition to farming, Emily stays active through competitive basketball, cycling, and gym workouts.

Training for the BFF competition has been a coping mechanism for her, helping her deal with the ongoing challenges of TB.

She is committed to returning to the competition next year, saying she’s “100%” ready for more.

Men under 40s 

William Arden, an arable and deer farmer from Lincolnshire, achieved a long-awaited victory in the BFF final on his fifth attempt.

The 29-year-old held off stiff competition from Dumfries farmer John Carlisle and East Sussex’s Daniel Hunter-Evans to take the spoils.

William manages his own fitness facility, The Farmyard Gym, and he attributed much of his success to his dedicated training regimen, exercising five to six times a week.

“It’s great to finally win one,” he said, minutes after being announced as the winner by event host Tom Kemp.

William said he felt “really tired” after the first events, especially the strenuous deadlifting of a Kubota RTV, but his persistence paid off.

He said his experience in previous finals and focus on strength and cardio training helped him push through the competition.

“I felt strong across all the events and it was just about enough to get me up there. It was a great day all round,” he added.

“It was a lot of preparation to get here and [it’s] great that it all came together.”

For William, fitness serves not only as physical preparation but also as a vital outlet for mental resilience, particularly given the unpredictability of farming.

“Fitness is my grounding,” he said, explaining that it allows him to switch off from the stresses of farming and emerge from workouts feeling more capable of facing challenges.

“When you come out of the other side after a good workout, with the endorphins flowing, the troubles don’t seem to be so troublesome anymore.”

William said he would celebrate his win with a couple of beers at home with friends and family.

Asked if he planned to return and defend his title in 2025, he said: “I’d be very keen to come back next year, even if it’s just to help organise.

“It would be nice to have a year off and a break, but the competitive edge may get the better of me!”

Women over 40s

Farmer’s wife, mum-of-two and freelance equestrian coach Anne Grindal says “it feels surreal” after winning the Women Over 40s category.

Devon-based agricultural machinery firm worker Amy Moore was runner-up and Sarah Godwin, a mixed farmer from Wiltshire, came third.

After finishing second in the Mixed Over 40s category last year, Anne was motivated to return and compete again.

She said it felt “really cool” to compete against like-minded women, joking, “We’re all a bit menopausal!”

Anne, who appeared on SAS Who Dares Wins: Jungle Hell in 2023, says regular exercise is the key to managing her busy lifestyle.

At 43, Anne juggles her work as an equestrian coach, raising two teenage sons involved in farming, and life on her family’s beef and arable farm in Warwickshire.

She credits regular exercise for keeping her fit and mentally balanced amid her busy life.

Anne’s training included a mix of bootcamp classes, weight training, personal trainer sessions, and even participating in a triathlon.

“When you get to my age, the body doesn’t hold up as well as you’d like it to,” she said.

“So, even just getting here and staying fit enough over the summer was an achievement in itself.”

Anne says competing in BFF and making new friends is the perfect tonic to life on the farm, which can be stressful at times.

“It’s a crazy time of year for farming. We really should be combining today, but I managed to drag my husband out,” she said.

“It’s about fitting it all in. But everyone has been fun and very supportive.”

Her introduction to BFF came thanks to her father-in-law, who suggested she enter after reading about the event in Farmers Weekly.

She planned to celebrate her win with a cup of tea, followed by some well-deserved rest.

Reflecting on the experience, Anne said that exercise is key to supporting mental health, encouraging others to “just do it”.

Whether she will defend her title next year remains to be seen, but she enjoyed the camaraderie and sense of achievement that came with the competition.

Men over 40s

Pig farmer Michael Georgiou hopes his BFF win will inspire more farmers to openly discuss their mental health challenges.

Highlighting the event’s focus on mental health awareness in farming, Michael stressed how crucial it is for people, especially the older generation, to feel comfortable talking about their mental wellbeing.

“If they see us doing it, then the younger generation sees it, and it becomes a chain reaction,” he said.

Michael combines his job in construction with helping to manage the family’s pig herd in Carmarthenshire, west Wales.

He says pig farming is a tough job, particularly during the harsh winter months, but going to the gym up to five times a week helps him to get by day to day and stay on top of his mental health.  

Michael admits it can sometimes be hard to summon the motivation to go to the gym, especially when his job gets busy. But the buzz from lifting weights and the sense of connection he gets from meeting friends makes it worthwhile.

He believes that chatting about shared struggles while exercising helps alleviate the stresses of farm life, especially during difficult weather conditions.

“You realise we are all in the same boat and all go through tough times. And if we just get together, chat a bit about it with the fitness, life gets much easier, especially during the wet weather.”

Michael’s dedication to fitness and mental health aligns with his broader success in farming, where he has won awards for his Saddleback pigs on the show circuit.

Grateful to a friend of his wife’s for encouraging him to enter the BFF competition, he admitted he was initially unsure about participating.

However, after a day filled with camaraderie and competition, Michael said taking part in the final was an unforgettable experience.

“What a day it’s been. I’ve met loads of different people here, and it’s been a great day,” he said.

Ed Holmes from Warwickshire was the runner-up, and Durham beef farmer Neil Blyth took third place.