‘Hardest Geezer’ Russ Cook becomes first person to run the length of Africa

A British man known as the “hardest geezer” has finished running the entire length of Africa after a gruelling challenge that has taken nearly a year.

Russ Cook, from Worthing, West Sussex, was joined by supporters as he crossed the finish line in Ras Angela, Tunisia, the most northern point of the African continent, on Sunday.

He began his 16,000km (9,941 miles) journey from the most southern point of the continent, Cape Agulhas in South Africa, on 22 April 2023.

The 27-year-old has faced visa complications, health scares and an armed robbery in his bid to become the first person to run the full length of the continent.

In the hours before completing the challenge he posted on the X social media platform: “Can’t believe it’s nearly over. See you at the shell garage soon boys & girls.”

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Throughout the venture, called Project Africa, Mr Cook has raised more than £650,000 for two charities, the Running Charity and Sandblast.

For the final day of his challenge, Mr Cook invited his supporters to take on the last marathon with him, with many flying out to Tunisia to run alongside him.

“How can you be tired when there’s this many people running with you?” he told Sky News. Last Tuesday, Mr Cook said the challenge had been “the toughest in my life but an immense honour”.

He wrote on X: “We have met incredible people in every single country we’ve been to that have welcomed us with love and kindness.

“The human spirit is a beautiful thing. Very grateful for these experiences and would definitely encourage anyone out there to go get after that adventure, whatever it looks like for you.”

In Angola, he and his team were robbed at gunpoint. They had cameras, phones and passports stolen. In August, he went missing and was separated from his supporters for days in the jungle in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

They eventually managed to free him by paying off villagers who were armed with machetes. In January, he turned to social media to help get a visa to cross the border from Mauritania into Algeria.

At the time, he said his challenge could end without the visa as there was “no other way” for him to reach the northern tip of Africa.

After a huge social media campaign, the Algerian Embassy said it would grant him a courtesy visa “on the spot”, meaning he could cross the border.

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Mr Cook also announced he will be throwing a finish-line party to celebrate his achievements at a hotel in Bizerte, Tunisia.

The party is set to feature a performance by rock band Soft Play, formerly known as Slaves, comprising Laurie Vincent and Isaac Holman.

Mr Cook wrote on X: “Can’t quite believe it but we’ve managed to pull off Soft Play playing the finish line party in Tunisia. Get your daiquiris ready girls & boys this is gonna be mega.”

At 22, Mr Cook ran from Asia to England, completing 71 marathons in 66 days. He had only run the Brighton Marathon before he decided to run from Asia to England.