| Russell Cook | |
| Nickname: | Hardest Geezer |
| Nationality: | English |
| Birth Date: | 13 March 1997 |
| Birth Place: | Worthing, England |
| Sport: | Ultrarunning |
| Updated: | 7 April 2024 |
Russell Cook (born 13 March 1997), also known as Hardest Geezer, is an English endurance athlete from Worthing, West Sussex. In April 2024, Cook became the first person to run the entire length of Africa from the southernmost to the northernmost point of the continent as part of Project Africa.[1]
Cook was born in Worthing, West Sussex,[2] attended Vale school in Findon before attending Worthing High School and Worthing College.
In 2019, Cook ran from Istanbul, Turkey to Worthing, England in 68 days with no support team.[3] The course covered approximately 2,900 km (1,800 miles). In 2020,[4] he set the world record for the fastest marathon run whilst pulling a car, in 9 hours, 56 minutes.
In 2021, Cook was buried alive for 7 days with just 20 litres of water and a ventilation tube. The event was livestreamed.[5]
On 11 June 2024, Cook began a 566km run from Wembley Stadium to Germany in support of the England national football team in the UEFA Euro 2024 competition. He aims to arrive at the Veltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen in time for the fixture between England and Serbia.[6]
See main article: Project Africa. On 22 April 2023, Cook began Project Africa, planning to run the entire length of the African continent. He began in Cape Agulhas, South Africa, the southernmost point and ended in Cape Angela, Tunisia, the northernmost point on 7 April 2024.[7] The course covered 16000km (10,000miles) and crossed 16 countries. During the run, he had to overcome several challenges including being robbed at gunpoint, food poisoning and being accosted by men with machetes.[8]
As part of his endeavour he raised money for the Running Charity, who offer running and mental health programmes to people who are struggling, as well as the charity Sandblast who support the indigenous Saharawi population of Western Sahara.[9] Cook took on the challenge because he had faced mental health issues, gambling addiction, and struggles with alcoholism.
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 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, 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.[10] 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".[11]
Two weeks after completing Project Africa, Cook was invited to run with British prime minister Rishi Sunak around Westminster, London.[12]
Cook has undertaken a project to run to every England game during the UEFA Euro 2024 football tournament. Starting on 11 June, Cook ran from Wembley Stadium to Gelsenkirchen, Germany, taking the ferry from Harwich to Hoek van Holland. Cook then ran to Frankfurt and Cologne.
The project is sponsored by Sports Direct and Score Draw, a clothing brand.