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Hardest Geezer reveals true feelings on random man beating him to finish line after running length of Africa

Hardest Geezer reveals true feelings on random man beating him to finish line after running length of Africa

Russ Cook was beaten to the finish line at the end of his epic run across Africa.

'Hardest Geezer' Russ Cook has finally given his thoughts on the man who beat him to the finish line of his epic run across the entire length of Africa.

Endurance athlete Cook raised more than £1million for charity after running the length of the continent - a 10,100-mile journey from Cape Agulhas in South Africa to Ras Angela in Tunisia.

It took the 27-year-old from Worthing, Sussex 352 days to complete and was the equivalent of 385 marathons.

He eventually crossed the finish line on April 7, surrounded by a huge crowd of supporters – many of whom had run the final length of his journey alongside him.

But his crowning moment was somewhat spoiled by one over-eager supporter.

The fan, who was carrying a Tunisian flag, beat Cook to the finish line by a matter of inches.

When asked to give his thoughts on the fan spoiling his moment, Cook told thefellaspod: "I did say... we got to the last 100 metres and I said 'let me go, let me go, let me go'.

"I don't know if he just didn't hear me, I don't know."

The podcast co-host then joked: "350 days and then this guy smokes you bro!'"

Cook then replied: "The only annoying thing… I didn't really care at the time. I didn't really know it happened.

"Just watching it back, it's like 'mate – we've got a documentary we're making, how are we going to cut that out?'

"He's a Tunisian man obviously, he's probably just proud of country and wants to make sure Tunisia is represented at the finish line.

"But he went a little bit far with it."


Cook has become a household name since his run but is yet to confirm if he will attempt another record-breaking challenge of the same scale as his run across Africa.

Speaking ahead of last month's London Marathon, in which he helped younger runners complete the race, he said: "In terms of my next big challenge, it's going to be a hard one to top. And I don't really want to be away for another year.

"There are a few young people running, so I'm going to pace someone if they want to do a sub four-hour or something.

"But I ain't got a fast one in me, I won't lie."

Featured Image Credit: LADbible & thefellaspod/TikTok

Topics: Athletics