William

Will Dean, MBE (born November 8, 1980) is a British businessman and former counter-terrorism officer and Harvard Business School MBA, who is the co-founder and CEO of Tough Mudder, and often is called "The Mark Zuckerberg of Extreme Sports". Dean was named to Sports Business Journal's prestigious 2017 "Top 40 Under 40 List." Tough Mudder currently employs over 150 people worldwide. The company repeatedly has been identified as one of the live streaming industry's content leaders.

A native of Great Britain, Dean was born in Sheffield, England.

Dean attended the University of Bristol, where he graduated with a Bachelors of Science degree in economics and history. Dean later attended Harvard Business School where he received an MBA.

In between his undergraduate and graduate studies, Dean spent five years working in counter-terrorism for the UK Foreign Office.

Dean co-founded Tough Mudder while attending Harvard Business School with Guy Livingstone, a former corporate lawyer. The company now hosts events in 10 countries, including the U.S., China, Australia and Dubai; more than 2.5 million people participated in Tough Mudder events last year, when the company generated over $100 million in revenue.

Dean created the concept at business school, however his professors were sceptical that Tough Mudder could become a thriving business. Defying their reservations, Dean hosted the first event in May 2010 with an expected participation of 500. 5,000 people turned up, vindicating Dean's stance and confirming the validity of the concept.

Dean has been named to Sports Business Daily's 40 Under 40, Crain's annual 40 Under 40 list (2012), was included on Fortune's 40 Under 40: Ones to Watch List (2013), and received the United States National EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Emerging Award (2013).

In 2014, Forbes profiled Dean, and asked him for his five top tips for entrepreneurs.

In 2015, the New York Times profiled Dean and explored what the CEO personally does to stay in shape while running the Tough Mudder business.

Tough Mudder has raised over $13 million for a variety of charities including Help for Heroes in the UK and other charity organizations around the world. In the 2017 New Years Honours, Dean was made MBE (Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) for his charitable contributions to sport.

Tough Guy

While at Harvard Business School, Dean studied Tough Guy, a UK company that specializes in survival competitions. Dean explored the feasibility of international expansion for Tough Guy. When Dean launched Tough Mudder in 2010, a lawsuit ensued, alleging Dean had used confidential information to start the company. The lawsuit was settled out of court in 2013, with no admission of wrongdoing.