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A row has erupted over Hardest Geezer’s claim to be the first person to run the full length of Africa.
Russ Cook, from West Sussex, completed his gruelling challenge on Sunday after reaching the finish line at the most northerly point in Tunisia – 352 days and over 16,000 km after setting off from the southern tip of South Africa.
The 27-year-old, who documented his arduous journey on TikTok and raised over £700,000 for charity, faced several scares that threatened his mission, including armed robbery, visa complications and food poisoning.
Cook believes he is the first person to run the full length of Africa – but that has now been disputed by the World Runners Association, a seven-member organisation of ultra-endurance athletes who say the record was set back in 2010.
The WRA say a Danish man named Jesper Olsen actually became the first person to run the length of Africa when he travelled from Taba in Egypt to the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa in 434 days.
The group say Olsen, who was 37 at the time, ran the length of Africa during a “world run” challenge that saw him cross several more continents and are adamant that his record still stands.
‘Hardest Geezer’ did not take the most direct route through Africa – instead crossing 16 countries and travelling across the western nations. Cook’s run was 3,400km longer than Olsen’s route but the WRA insisted that it did not matter.
Tunisia Running Across Africa (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
The WRA claim to have contacted Cook warning him that Olsen and two other members, Serge Girard from France and Tony Mangan from Ireland, had also completed the challenge first. The Guinness World Records are set to investigate whether Cook’s claim can stand.
“He cannot say he is the first person to run the length of Africa,” WRA member Marie Leautey said. “We really congratulate Russ, we just do not want Jesper’s achievement to be denied.
“I can accept that maybe he did not know about it or didn’t do the research or he really thought he was the first person, for some reason.
“We contacted him [Mr Cook] on social media, on Instagram, social media, before this. We have tried and now we have seen the press in the UK, saying he was the first.
“We should get the facts right. We have no problem with him claiming to be the first to run from the most southern [point] to the most northern.
“But when we read he is the first man to run the entire length of Africa it is just not true, from a facts perspective.”
Meanwhile, Olsen gently poked fun at Cook for taking “several days off” during his challenge.
Speaking to the Telegraph, he said: “Serge Girard in his world run crossed five continents and completed his run without one single day off during the entire run.
“To compare this with Russ Cook’s run through Africa where there were several days off – I think, with all respect – is in itself a bit of a stretch, to compare a half-marathon with a full marathon.
“So for me it’s not about putting attention on myself. But to put the right scale to things so recreational runners can get an idea of where the maximal limits are in ultra-running. And hopefully get inspired.”
Backed by millions of supporters on social media, Hardest Geezer arrived in Ras Angela, Tunisia’s most northerly point on Sunday and was greeted with shouts and cheers from those who had flown out to meet him.
Throughout the venture, called Project Africa, Mr Cook has raised more than £600,000 for two charities, the Running Charity and Sandblast, the latter of which is a UK-registered charity raising awareness of the indigenous Saharawi people of western Sahara.
Last Tuesday, Mr Cook said on X that the challenge had “no doubt been the toughest of my life” but an “immense honour”.
“We have met incredible people in every single country we’ve been to that have welcomed us with love & kindness. The human spirit is a beautiful thing,” he wrote.
“Very grateful for these experiences and would definitely encourage anyone out there to go get after that adventure, whatever it looks like for you.
“Thank you to the people of Africa for being such an amazing part of this journey.”
The WRA president, Phil Essam, said: “The WRA recognises Mr Jesper Kenn Olsen of Denmark as the first person to have run the full length of Africa.
“The World Runners Association therefore contests the claim made by British national Mr Russ Cook to be the first person to run the length of Africa.”
Includes reporting from PA
