THE 'Hardest Geezer' has enjoyed celebrating with his girlfriend after smashing his 352-day run from South Africa to Tunisia.
Russ Cook, from Worthing in West Sussex, has raised a glass to becoming the first man in history to run the entire length of Africa.
The incredible feat, estimated to be the equivalent to 386 marathons, has seen an eye-watering £685,000 raised for charity so far.
Russ, 27, crossed the border into Tunisia on Thursday night and broke through the red ribbon finish line in Ras Angela on Sunday afternoon.
He was greeted by emotional family and friends, as well as hundreds of proud supporters.
As the mammoth challenge came to an end, Russ stood with his hands on his head in disbelief and went for a quick dip in the Mediterranean waters.
He told Sky News at the finish line: "I'm pretty tired," as someone else joked "let's get you a strawberry daiquiri."
Later Russ was snapped enjoying a pink frozen cocktail with his girlfriend Emily Bell sat on his lap.
Now it’s time to party and the daiquiris will be flowing. It will be good to get into a real crisp bed and have a long hot soak in a bath.
Russ cook
She previously told GMB: "It's been scary, terrifying at times."
Russ revealed he couldn’t wait to be reunited with his girlfriend in the days leading up to their highly anticipated renuinon.
He said: “I warned the girls and boys to get the daiquiris set up.
“Nothing was going to stop me, even if I had to crawl my way over broken glass to get to the very end.
“Not too bad for a former fat lad with booze and gambling issues.”
The endurance athlete previously hailed his devoted girlfriend on X/Twitter, where he wrote: "Tell you what’s harder than running the entire length of africa.
"Being the girlfriend of the bloke running the entire length of africa. My girl is an absolute diamond.
"Put her through the emotional wringer daily. Deserves the world and everything in it.
Quitting never even came into it. Not even thought of it.
Russ
"Can’t wait to share a strawberry daiquiri with her on a Tunisian beach and tell her how beautiful she is.
"Would be in a mental asylum somewhere in Congo without her."
Russ spoke to Sky News as he set off for his final run in the mission - starting from a petrol station in Ghezala, Tunisia.
"One more day, one final push to get this thing done," he said, as he admitted to shedding "a few tears".
"352 days on the road is a long time without seeing family, my girlfriend," he continued.
"My body is in a lot of pain but I've only got one day, I'm not about to complain.
"We're going to have strawberry daiquiris on the beach tonight, it's going to be unreal."
I have passed blood for six days and suffered awful food poisoning, a bad back that only painkillers could cure, had visa nightmares, dehydration and suffered exhaustion.
Russ
Speaking of the simple things that inspired him to keep going, Russ adds: “These 352 days have been the toughest of my life, but also such an immense honour.
“I have met incredible people every single day in every single country who welcomed us.
“Seeing all the kids running out to jog with us has been wonderful.
“But, in some remote areas, being white with a big red beard and red hair, I did terrify a few kids!"
In the days leading up to crossing the finish line, Russ also told his followers his body was "really starting to break down".
He joked he would need someone to book him an emergency appointment when he lands in the UK next week.
But, added "at the nearest bakery", as he kept up the pace.
“Now it’s time to party and the daiquiris will be flowing. It will be good to get into a real crisp bed and have a long hot soak in a bath," he said in the final days.
And, on Friday, Russ' football team shared an entertaining post revealing the running legend had asked if training was on next week.
He joked in the group chat: "We got any more fixtures this season?
"Got a bit carried away with the pre season training but I'm ready to go next week."
It comes after Russ endured injuries, food poisoning, extreme weather conditions, a kidnapping and a robbery on his journey.
He wore through 20 pairs of trainers as he trekked across 16 countries on his 19million step mission.
The 'Hardest Geezer' began at Cape Africa’s southernmost point, Cape Agulhas, on April 22, 2023.
He set a challenge to let his hair and beard grow freely until he crossed the finish line in Bizerte in Tunisia.
Through documenting his travels on social media, Russ amassed millions of followers - some of whom have joined him on stretches of running - and was dubbed "Africa's Forrest Gump"
The sporting legend has been candid about his past with drinking and gambling, but told how everything changed after running the Brighton half marathon when he was 19.
He said: “I was in a bad place and my mate knew it. I was unfit and drinking and blowing money in the bookies, so I agreed to run it.
“After that, I did the Brighton marathon. Through training, I learnt the values of running and discipline and self-belief, which empowered me, and I applied it to other things in life."
While running the length of Africa may be his most impressive feat, Russ was no stranger to the sport.
In 2019 he completed a whopping 71 marathons through 11 countries in just 66 days.
But, the idea for his latest challenge was sparked during Covid, when Russ wanted to raise money for refugees and the homeless.
He said: “People reckon I’m nuts but, if I want to do something, I will do it regardless of how outlandish it seems.
"Quitting never even came into it. Not even thought of it.
“I decided to run Africa for my personal achievement and have some mad stories to tell — and I bloody well did it.
“I did it first and that makes me so proud. This was all about how far I could push my limits. It is more than just running across a whole continent."
Russ recalled the "blazing heat" and "freezing cold", as well as battling jungles, sand and snow storms in his travels.
He even kept up an average of 30 miles a day, including 90 days through the Sahara Desert.
“I have passed blood for six days and suffered awful food poisoning, a bad back that only painkillers could cure, had visa nightmares, dehydration and suffered exhaustion," he added.
At one point, Russ had to stop to be checked by medics in Nigeria after "excruciating" back pain".
In the Congo, tribal natives wielding machetes kidnapped him on day 102 last August.
Russ — who feared they could be cannibals — had been separated from his support vehicle due to the terrain.
He accidentally walked into a rural settlement and explained: “There was a chief there who told me I must give him money. I told him I had none.
“Pretty soon I found myself surrounded by lots of blokes with machetes, who escorted me into the bush.
“I didn’t know what they were going to do, so I emptied my bag to show I had nothing but a biscuit, and gave it to them.
“Then I ran for it, bushwhacking through jungle paths. I kept off any tracks until I was far away.
“Then, suddenly, two men pulled up on a motorbike and took me on a seven-hour ride into the jungle and I was thinking, ‘Is this it?’.
“I thought, ‘Here is the self-proclaimed Hardest Geezer being held in a Congo gulag before being ripped apart limb by limb by these people and eaten’.”
After a nail-biting two days, Russ' team were able to pay an agreed ransom and he was released.
The runner was also help up by armed maniacs in Angola on day 64 last June.
He had jumped into the support van for lunch at the roadside unaware they were being watched by gunmen planning to rob them.
He posted on X: “Nothing like a gun being pointed in your face to let you know you are alive.
“It was like any other day when a couple of lads pop open the side door and demanded everything we have.
“None of us got killed or injured. We did lose a lot of our gear. Losing our passports was the big blow as it had our visas to move onwards with.
“It was a nightmare trying to get it sorted in Angola so we had to halt the challenge for two weeks and drive back to Namibia to get new passports and visas.
“That was 1,281 miles back to Windhoek to sort the paperwork and 1,281 miles back to the start.”
Russ' journey was halted again when he had a problem securing a visa to cross the border into Algeria on day 278.
After a four day stalemate and pleas on social media, the UK’s Algerian embassy offered courtesy visas.
From South Africa, Russ ran along the west coast up through Namibia, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Senegal, Mauritania, and Algeria, before finishing in Tunisia just under a year later.
He complete his final 29.3-mile stretch in 4hr 47min.
RUSS’S Project Africa challenge will bring a massive funding boost to two amazing causes – and it is easy for you to pledge your support.
One beneficiary, The Running Charity, works to transform the lives of young people affected by homelessness and multiple or complex needs.
The other, Sandblast, helps Sahrawi refugees. To donate, visit: givestar.io/gs/projectafrica
