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by Mick the Ram
An Englishman has completed an astonishing run from one end of Africa to the other, in a feat that took him just under an entire year.
Russell Cook, who has earned himself the nickname “Hardest Geezer”, set off from Cape Agulhas in South Africa on 22 April 2023 and passed through 16 countries before ending his remarkable challenge 10,100 miles later, at Rad Angela in Tunisia at the weekend.
The 27-year-old from Worthing, West Sussex, had initially intended to tackle the run in the opposite direction, but an issue obtaining a visa caused a change of plan and a decision was taken to start in the south.
He had to contend with numerous mishaps along the way, including being held up at gunpoint, approached by a machete-wielding gang, and tolerate a period of ill-health.
It was announced that the run, which was the equivalent of 385 marathons, has raised in excess of £700,000 for charity.
His claim to be the first to achieve the accomplishment was cast into doubt however shortly after he finished, when it was stated that a Danish athlete had done the same back in 2010.
Visa changes intended direction
Back in February 2023, Mr Cook was expecting his journey to begin where he would actually end up finishing. His team struggled to obtain a visa for Algeria which would have been his first border crossing, so everything turned on its head.
He quickly ticked off South Africa and neighbouring Namibia, but in the next country, Angola, he suffered a major setback when gunmen robbed him and his support team of passports, visas, cameras, phones, and cash.
They were able to eventually get these replaced and actually had a full police escort across the remainder of the country. A few weeks later in the DR Congo they were confronted by a machete-wielding mob, but undeterred they pressed on.
Through the pain barrier
Inevitably his body began to play up in response to the constant pounding it was taking from running more than a marathon a day and he was advised to rest when doctors found blood and protein in his urine, just six weeks into the challenge. He also had a recurring back pain that became increasingly problematic.
By the time he went past the 200-day marker, he was in so much discomfort that he had to take a two-day rest in Nigeria. Nevertheless, he did not earn his nickname for no reason and he refused to allow the pain to beat him.
“I took a couple of days to get some scans and as there was no bone damage, I figured the only option left was to stop mincing about like a little weasel, get the strongest painkillers available and continue.”
Advised to give up over terror threat
Just as he appeared to be on the home stretch the Algerian visa issue – which had caused him to alter his plans from the start – resurfaced. He was forced to halt whilst he waited for permission to enter the country from Mauritania.
The Foreign Office strongly advised him against continuing over safety concerns, irrespective of the visa problem. They warned that terrorists were likely to try and carry out attacks and kidnaps in the area he intended to travel through.
Refusing to be discouraged, he put out an appeal on X, formerly Twitter, which was viewed by an incredible 11 million people, two of whom were MP’s from the UK who took up his fight and eventually he was granted a courtesy visa, allowing him to press on.
“Mad ginger man”
He then faced the small matter of crossing the Sahara Desert and its total lack of resources. He said at the time: “Not many people live there, so in terms food, petrol and water, it’s slim pickings, and I’ll be running on sand, which is an absolute killer.”
But he showed that he retained his sense of humour when asked about potential encounters with wildlife. “Luckily for me, all the big ones seem to have heard rumours of a mad ginger man running through the continent, and they have just deserted at all costs,” he joked.
Party time
Finally he made it to the other side and when he began his last day setting off from Ghezala, Tunisia, he had one last reflection: “352 days on the road is a long time without seeing family or my girlfriend. My body is in a lot of pain but I’m not about to complain. And we’re going to have strawberry daiquiris on the beach tonight.”
His nearest and dearest embraced him as he crossed the finish line and he readied himself for a celebratory party.
First man doubts cast
His joy was diluted later though when his delight at being the first person to complete the length of Africa run, was thrown into question by a tiny international sporting body that consists of just seven members.
The World Runners Association (WRA) claimed that Danish athlete Jesper Olsen, one of its founders actually deserved the title, as he had achieved the feat in 2010, when he ran 7,949 miles from Taba in Egypt, to the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, taking 434 days.
Mr Cook argued that his journey was 2,113 miles longer than Olsen’s was, but the group was adamant that their member should hold the honour, insisting that the length of Africa is calculated at 4,971 miles, as the crow flies’, adding that it is irrelevant that the British runner’s distance was longer.
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