Current:Home > ScamsRuss Cook, Britain's "Hardest Geezer," runs length of Africa in 10,000-mile epic quest for charity -TradeBridge
Russ Cook, Britain's "Hardest Geezer," runs length of Africa in 10,000-mile epic quest for charity
View
Date:2025-04-17 06:19:33
London — A British man has taken the concept of running for charity to a whole new level. Russ Cook, 27, completed a year-long quest Sunday to run the length of Africa.
After running through 16 countries in 352 days, true grit and perseverance fueled Cook over the finish line in Tunisia on Sunday. The Englishman — who calls himself the "Hardest Geezer" — ran about 10,000 miles in total, from the southern to the northern coasts of the continent, braving thieves, kidnappers and the elements as he traversed jungles, deserts and everything in between.
Cook faced an armed robbery in Angola, where bandits stole his and his team's money, passports and equipment at gunpoint. He was nearly stopped in his tracks by the lack of a visa to enter Algeria, but diplomats at the country's embassy in London managed to secure the necessary paperwork in time.
The most frightening part of the trip, however, was being kidnapped briefly.
"Scariest moment was in the Congo, when I was on the back of a motorbike, thinking I was about to die," he said in a social media post after crossing the finish line. "Getting driven into the jungle, yeah — that was pretty nuts."
The Brit documented his dangerous and draining feat of endurance via his Instagram feed, where he tried to convey the rigors of running across the vast continent.
"Getting hit with another sandstorm this morning — sucking oxygen, chewing sand for breakfast," he said in one post. "They're tryin' to get me gone but they just can't."
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Russ Cook (@hardestgeezer)
Cook used his social media posts to invite people from across the world to join him on his journey, and American Blake Warren told CBS News he was lying on his couch one Sunday afternoon when he came across a post and then made a snap decision.
"I saw it and he said everybody can come. I literally got on Skyscanner, I looked for a ticket and, 20 minutes later, I bought the ticket and here I am," he said, speaking to CBS News from Tunisia.
"I just couldn't miss a crazy historic opportunity like this," Warren said after taking part in the last leg of Cook's epic run.
The Englishman has raised almost $1 million for homeless young people and clean water for Africa — as well as a possible place in the record books.
But while Cook claims to be the first person to ever run the entire length of the African continent, the World Runners Association insists that one of its founders did it first in 2010. Cook argues that his trek was longer.
He ended his run by taking a dip in the Mediterranean - and downing a strawberry daiquiri to mark his sweet success.
- In:
- Water Safety
- Africa
- Homelessness
- Water Conservation
- United Kingdom
Ian Lee is a CBS News correspondent based in London, where he reports for CBS News, CBS Newspath and CBS News Streaming Network. Lee, who joined CBS News in March 2019, is a multi-award-winning journalist, whose work covering major international stories has earned him some of journalism's top honors, including an Emmy, Peabody and the Investigative Reporters and Editors' Tom Renner award.
Twitter InstagramveryGood! (29426)
Related
- Apple iOS 18.2: What to know about top features, including Genmoji, AI updates
- Kendall Jenner and Bad Bunny’s Matching Moment Is So Good
- Shop the Best 2023 Father's Day Sales: Get the Best Deals on Gifts From Wayfair, Omaha Steaks & More
- Coal Train Protesters Target One of New England’s Last Big Coal Power Plants
- Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
- Tatcha Flash Sale Alert: Get Over $400 Worth of Amazing Skincare Products for $140
- World’s Current Fossil Fuel Plans Will Shatter Paris Climate Limits, UN Warns
- 3 dead, 8 wounded in shooting in Fort Worth, Texas parking lot
- What to watch: O Jolie night
- Melissa Rivers Shares What Saved Her After Mom Joan Rivers' Sudden Death
Ranking
- Can Bill Belichick turn North Carolina into a winner? At 72, he's chasing one last high
- Joey Chestnut remains hot dog eating champ. Here's how many calories he consumed during the event.
- Puerto Rico Considers 100% Renewable Energy, But Natural Gas May Come First
- Targeted as a Coal Ash Dumping Ground, This Georgia Town Fought Back
- From family road trips to travel woes: Americans are navigating skyrocketing holiday costs
- Man slips at Rocky Mountain waterfall, is pulled underwater and dies
- Desperation Grows in Puerto Rico’s Poor Communities Without Water or Power
- After Dozens of Gas Explosions, a Community Looks for Alternatives to Natural Gas
Recommendation
Why Sean "Diddy" Combs Is Being Given a Laptop in Jail Amid Witness Intimidation Fears
Man in bulletproof vest fatally shoots 5, injures 2 in Philadelphia; suspect in custody
The BET Award Nominations 2023 Are Finally Here: See the Full List
All-transgender and nonbinary hockey team offers players a found family on ice
Realtor group picks top 10 housing hot spots for 2025: Did your city make the list?
The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 2 Teaser Features New Version of Taylor Swift's Song August
Multiple shark attacks reported off New York shores; 50 sharks spotted at one beach
Appalachia’s Strip-Mined Mountains Face a Growing Climate Risk: Flooding