Pokémon Go Player becomes the first Brit to catch them all!

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POKEMON

You might have reached Level 11, hatched the odd Pinsir and caught enough Drowsees to start a psychic seance – but if you hoped to be the first UK Pokemon master, you’re too late.

Sam Clark, aged 32, got there before you and has caught all 142 different Pokemon species available in Britain over the past fortnight.

Pretty impressive. During his journey, he walked 225km and caught 1390 of the pocket monsters, ending the quest by catching the elusive water Pokemon Lapras near Primark (also sighted on London Underground’s Circle line, according to Metro reporters).

He even got hold of a US exclusive, by hatching Tauros out of an egg. It all helped Sam in the real world too, as walking so much helped him lose a massive two stone!

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The married dad-of-four said he had been struggling to lose weight for nearly ten years but had found it hard to keep motivated. ‘I broke my neck in a car accident in 2008, which made me pile on weight, but the game has really encouraged me to get outdoors and shift it,’ he said. ‘I can now get into a pair of jeans I haven’t been able to wear for six years.”

He calculated he has walked the same distance as going from Southampton to London and back while playing the game, which he downloaded before it was officially available so had a head start. He has now reached level 24, and used tactics based on hunting down specific Pokemon, rather than just aiming to level up.

 

Sam has also hosted Pokemon Go meet-ups through his shop, Cyberjam Gaming, and says the game has encouraged him to tackle his anxiety. ‘Some people don’t realise how sociable the game is – when you’re out and about, it’s easy to get chatting to other gamers,’ he said. ‘The more people are playing in one place, the more Pokemon appear and the better it is.

‘It really is such a good way to get outdoors, get fit and make friends.’ His wife Hayley is not such a huge fan, but is happy that Sam has found such an active hobby – that he enjoys with their four young children.

‘She likes the game, but she thinks I’m playing too much,’ he said. ‘She does buy me merchandise though, and she’s happy with my weight loss, which keeps me motivated.” Sam says he will keep playing Pokemon for fun, despite having completed his main objective, and hopes to continue shedding the pounds.

 

 

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