Project Africa was a successful attempt by British endurance athlete Russ Cook to be the first person to run the entire length of continental Africa from the southernmost point to the northernmost point.[1] [2]
Starting from Cape Agulhas, South Africa in February 2023, it took Cook 352 days and approximately 10,190 miles (16,400 km) to reach the most northerly point of Africa in Bizerte, Tunisia on 7 April 2024.[3] Although initially planning to complete the feat in 240 days, complications with visas, injury, armed robbery, and kidnapping led to the attempt taking over three months longer. As of April 2024, Cook is the only known person to have ever run the entire length of Africa from the continent's southernmost to northernmost point.
The project was fundraising for two charities, The Running Charity and Sandblast, and exceeded its £1,000,000 goal on 24 April 2024.[4] [5]
Starting from Cape Agulhas, South Africa, Cook traveled approximately 10190 miles (16,400 km) through 16 countries along the western coast of Africa to reach the most northerly point in Bizerte, Tunisia.
The full list of countries Cook traversed (in order of first entry) is as follows:[6]
The route included an extended stint through an extremely rural section of the Saharan desert in Mauritania along unpaved roads. During this segment Cook was forced to run at night to avoid the excessive heat of the desert.[7] He was also subjected to several sandstorms and a snowstorm in Algeria.
Cook had originally planned to run from Tunisia to South Africa, however, due to Algerian visa issues he was forced to invert the route and travel from south to north.
Whilst Cook was alone for much of the running he was supported by a crew throughout the project, meeting with them at least twice a day for breaks as well to sleep.[8]
Besides logistics support the crew’s primary function was to produce content for Cook’s social media channels and a biweekly Youtube series documenting the project. The crew also plan to produce a future documentary of the project. Due to this requirement many of the crew members were photographers and filmmakers.[9] The initial crew consisted of:
Later in the project the crew varied with new members being added and others leaving. Other crew members include:
The crew initially lived and travelled in a modified van, nicknamed “Nelly”, but later acquired a 4×4 vehicle to traverse more challenging roads.
A lack of funding was a substantial issue from the conception of the project with it taking several years to collect initial funds from sponsors and investors. Despite this length of time Cook started the run with limited funding. Due to this, Cook and his crew were reliant on income from sponsorship and social media to complete the project.
On 24 June 2023, 64 days into the attempt, Cook and his support crew were robbed at gunpoint in Angola of cameras, money, and passports containing visas for many of the remaining countries.[11]
Following the incident, in which nobody was hurt, the team received a police escort for the remainder of their time in Angola.[12]
During the attempt Cook suffered from multiple bouts of food poisoning as well as catching the flu.
The first bout of food poisoning occurred less than 30 days into the attempt which he ran through. Two weeks later, he began to urinate blood and protein for no clear cause forcing him to reduce his mileage for two days until it was confirmed the issue was not serious.[13]
Cook also suffered from several injuries during the attempt. By around day 200, Cook experienced severe back pain, forcing him to take a two day rest period during which he received treatment in a hospital in Nigeria.
Visa complications were a regular issue, especially after the loss of passports and visas in the robbery. These issues forced Cook to pause the attempt for an extended period whilst visiting various embassies where he attempted to obtain new visas.[14]
The Algeria–Mauritania border presented particular difficulties. Cook originally planned to run from north to south, however, due to a lack of an Algerian visa he reversed the route at the last minute. Despite this, by day 278 Cook’s team had still been unable to obtain an Algerian visa. However following a post to his online following on social media which garnered large amounts of traction, he was granted a courtesy visa by the Algerian embassy in London five days later.[15] [16]
On day 102 of the run Cook was separated from his support crew in rural DRC. During this time he entered a small rural settlement where he was apprehended by men armed with machetes who demanded payment. He was later taken to another village seven hours further into the jungle where he was held in a hut for several days until his team were able to reach him and pay off his captors. [17] [18] Following this, Cook modified his route and travelled through Cabinda rather than continuing through the DRC. Cook later described this experience as the “scariest moment” of the project and stated that “Probably for about one minute (I) thought about quitting, and then I realised I couldn't, so that was about as close as it got”.
Logistical issues were a regular challenge for Cook and his support crew, particularly with regards to the transport and functionality of their support van. Breakdowns were a regular occurrence from the onset of the project with the van’s brakes requiring repairs as early as day 5.[19]
Transport of the vehicle also presented issues including having to arrange to fly the vehicle to South Africa as well as shipping it via boat from the Republic of Congo to Cameroon due to a lack of passable roads.[20] Due to these issues the crew also purchased a second 4×4 support vehicle.
Having completed the challenge, the claim Cook was the first to run the full length of Africa was disputed by the World Runners Association (WRA) and Nicholas Bourne. The disputes center on differing routes and semantics. The WRA agreed Cook is the first to run from Africa's southernmost to northernmost point[21] but claims WRA member Jesper Olsen is the first to run the full length in 2010, running from Taba, Egypt to the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa as part of a world run,[22] [23] while Nicholas Bourne's 1998 run, starting in Cape Town, South Africa and finishing in Cairo, Egypt, was certified by the Guinness World Records in 2000.[24] According to The Independent, "Mr Bourne said disputes often arise around ultra-running records because there was no governing body to oversee and set criteria for long-distance challenges". According to Guinness World Records they have no official record for the first man to have run the length of Africa because "there is no recognised standard for the route, distance or time taken".[25]