Mike Tindall takes part in Loch Tay Quadrathon endurance event

FORMER England rugby international Mike Tindall yesterday joined competitors for what is billed as Scotland’s toughest one-day endurance event.

Former rugby player Mike Tindall takes part in the Artemis Great Kindrochit Quadrathlon. Picture: PA

Tindall, 36, was one of about 300 men and women taking part in the Artemis Great Kindrochit Quadrathlon, which was held by Loch Tay in Perthshire.

Challengers took on a 1.35km swim, followed by a 24km run, an 11km kayak and a 54km cycle.

Tindall was partnered by former Scottish international scrum-half Rory Lawson and competed against British skiing champions Chemmy Alcott and Dougie Crawford.

The gruelling event is expected to raise £250,000 for charities Mary’s Meals and Mercy Corps.

The quadrathlon, now in its 15th year, has previously been won by round-the-world cyclist Mark Beaumont, who completed it in eight hours, 37 minutes.

On reaching the finish line, each team must chop a watermelon in half with a sword.

Tindall, husband of the Queen’s granddaughter Zara Phillips, said last month: “The biggest challenge for me is definitely the run. It’s over seven Munros, so it could be an issue.

“Rory’s 20kg lighter than me and better at running. He’s not the best swimmer, so I said I’ll wait for him after the swim if he waits for me after the run.

“I think if we can do it in 12 to 13 hours then we’ll be over the moon.”

The former Bath and Glou­cester player, who was a member of England’s 2003 Rugby World Cup-winning squad, has been training for the event since appearing as a contestant in the Channel 4 show The Jump and Bear Grylls: Mission Survive, which was shown on ITV earlier this year.