The 2027 Clemson 8 Challenge - "Lest We Forget"

The Clemson 8 Challenge - Run/Walk/Bike/Hike/Swim/Ski

Mark your calendar, as we will be hosting an in-person OFFICIALLY TIMED race at 9:00 am on Saturday, February 27, 2027, around the Clemson University campus, along with a virtual race from February 27 to March 6, 2027. The Challenge is open to the general public. CLEMSON STUDENTS, USE YOUR LOCAL ADDRESS WHEN REGISTERING AND NOT YOUR HOME ADDRESS.

You can complete your own run, walk, bike, hike, swim, or ski in Clemson, S.C., or on your own course - in your own town in one day or throughout the eight days. High school JROTC teams will have until April 9th to complete their challenge. Your participant packet consists of a 100% cotton t-shirt, a wooden nickel, a race bib, and a window decal.

EVERY RACE DAY PARTICIPANT WILL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO WIN SWAG FROM THE BATAAN MEMORIAL DEATH MARCH MARATHON IN NEW MEXICO.

100% of the proceeds will benefit Clemson University's Military-Affiliated student organizations.  The first six Challenges raised $139,628.54 for scholarships. The 2027 goal is to raise $19,420. 1942 is the year of the Death March. Dividends from the endowment and your donations will assist in paying for multiple teams to compete in the Bataan Memorial Death March Marathon in New Mexico on March 20, 2027.

Donations can be made on-line during your registration or if you want a tax deduction, please contact Amy Craft at the Clemson University Foundation M-F from 8:00 am - 4:30 pm EST at 864-656-1240, [email protected] or mail a check to:  Clemson University Foundation, Attn:  Amy Craft, P.O. Box 1889, Clemson, SC 29633 On the for line, write: Bataan Endowment.

Direct online link: https://iamatiger.clemson.edu/giving/giving-to-clemson?id=9ed46b59-6d7e-4b16-88c6-961984a7efe0

If you would like to become a Race Sponsor, contact John Seketa at [email protected] or 864-903-1487 for more information.

On April 9, 1942, six Clemson alumni became prisoners of war with tens of thousands of their brothers-in-arms when American troops who had been fighting in the Philippine theater of WWII were ordered to surrender to the Japanese. They were marched North some 70 miles by their ruthless captors in what would come to be known as the Bataan Death March, one of the most notorious war crimes in history.  Seven other alumni were also captured on neighboring islands during World War II.  

Already weak and starving from months of intense fighting and illness, the POWs were herded with other sick, wounded, and starving soldiers through the searing heat of the Philippine jungles. Thousands died. Those who survived the march then had to survive for years in the inhumane and brutal conditions of Japanese prisoner-of-war camps, and the sinking by our own Navy of unmarked prison ships trying to steal the POWs away to the mainland towards the end of the war. It is impossible to know the exact number, but it is estimated that at least 57 percent of the captured Americans did not survive the war, more than 11,500 souls, which is considered a very conservative number by most experts.

Colonel Skardon, 104, was the last living member of this illustrious group. He was well known as the only survivor of the real Bataan Death March who walked in the annual Bataan Memorial Death March (BMDM) at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., one of the toughest and most popular “ultramarathons” in the world. The event has become a pilgrimage for veterans, active-duty military members, supporters, the few remaining survivors, and family members of the men who perished in the march and POW camps.

Colonel Skardon had walked in the BMDM 12 times, most often 8.5 miles, beginning in 2007 when he was 89. In 2019, at 101, he walked more than three miles through the desert to honor his brothers-in-arms who did not return from the war. He considered it his duty. He was on his way to walk again in 2021 when the event was canceled due to the pandemic.  In response, the Clemson 8 Challenge was created by a team of students, veterans, alumni, and friends to enable Colonel Skardon to continue his pilgrimage from his home in Clemson.  The 8 represents the annual miles  Colonel Skardon walked to honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country in one of the most brutal wartime events in history.  

On Thursday, November. 11, 2021 (Veteran's Day), Colonel Skardon was awarded a star in a private ceremony and a rank of Honorary Brigadier General. On Monday, November 15, 2021, General Skardon passed away.

After registering for the Clemson 8 Challenge, everyone is encouraged to continue their training and participate in the 2027 in-person or virtual edition of the 38th Annual Bataan Memorial Death March at https://bataanmarch.com/

For more information on those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country from Clemson A&M College and Clemson University, visit the Clemson University Scroll of Honor website: https://soh.alumni.clemson.edu/

Here is a list of 28 known Clemson graduates and 3 former students who were POWs. 

World War II

• Army Air Force Captain Theodore Cuyler Bigger '34, York County, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese and survived the Bataan Death March.
• Army 1LT Martin Crook, Jr. ’39, Spartanburg, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese and survived the Bataan Death March.
  • https://soh.alumni.clemson.edu/scroll/martin-crook-jr/ 
    
• Army Captain William R. English ’37, Columbia, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese on Cebu Island.
  • https://soh.alumni.clemson.edu/scroll/william-robins-english/ 
    
• Army Major Albert M. George ’36, Aiken, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese on the island of Mindanao.
  
• Army Colonel Louis D. Hutson ’13, Aiken, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese after being wounded on Bataan.
  
• Army Captain Marion R. “Manny” Lawton ’40, Garnett, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese and survived the Bataan Death March.
  
• Army Captain Henry D. Leitner ’37, Greenwood, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese and survived the Bataan Death March.
  • https://soh.alumni.clemson.edu/scroll/henry-daniel-leitner/
• Army 1LT Otis F. Morgan ’38, Laurens, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese on the island of Corregidor.
  • https://soh.alumni.clemson.edu/scroll/otis-foster-morgan/
• Army Lt. Colonel William Allen Orr ’38, Anderson, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese and survived the Bataan Death March.
• Marine Captain Wesley McCoy Platt '35, Summerville, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese on Wake Island.
  • https://soh.alumni.clemson.edu/scroll/wesley-mccoy-platt/
• Army Air Force Captain Francis Herbert Scarborough ’39, Bishopville, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese on the island of Corregidor.
  • https://soh.alumni.clemson.edu/scroll/francis-herbert-scarborough/
• Army Captain Beverly N. “Ben” Skardon ’38, Walterboro, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese and survived the Bataan Death March.
• Army 1LT Howard Monroe Vassey ’40, Chesnee, S.C. - Captured by the Japanese on the island of Corregidor.

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