Arthur, the stray dog who joined a race team and refused to be left behind

Meet Arthur the stray dog who followed an extreme sports team during a grueling 430-mile race through the Amazon rainforest and refused to leave their side until the finish.
Team Peak Performance were taking part in the Adventure Racing World Championship 2014 in Ecuador through the Amazon rain forest where the Swedish group sat down for a meal before a 20 mile trek in Ecuador when they saw a stray dog.
Mikael Lindnord fed the animal a meatball before the team carried on but the scruffy creature followed them. They tried to get rid of him, primarily for his own safety, but he refused to go so he became an unofficial fifth team member.
At certain parts of the race, the team had to help Arthur out as the mud was too deep. Arthur also stood by one of the team mate when he was severely dehydrated.
Before one part of the race – a 36-mile kayak around the coast – organisers warned the team that taking Arthur along posed a risk to his and their safety.
They tried to set off without him, but as they left he jumped into the water beside them and started desperately paddling.
Team Captain Mikael Lindord, picked him up, put him in the kayak and let him stay for the rest of the journey.
The group of four decided to name him Arthur and have now adopted him and flown him back to Sweden
Lindnord said: ‘I came to Ecuador to win the World Championship. Instead, I got a new friend’
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