On April 7, 2024, Russ Cook completed his journey of running the entire length of Africa in just under a year.  Cook started in the southernmost part of South Africa, and reached the Tunsian Coast on Sunday.  Cook documented his entire journey on his YouTube channel which gained around 187,000 subscribers and raised a little over $965,000 for charity according to a CNN article posted April 8th.

In the same CNN article, Cook talks of the struggles he went through on his journey through Africa.  Cook’s original goal was to be finished by Christmas, which would be running 360 marathons in 240 days.  “It just took a few years of smashing rock bottom to start thinking, The only way I’m going to get out of this is by taking absolute responsibility for the situation that I’m in,’” Cook said in an interview with CNN’s Ben Church on April 8th.  “Trying to improve myself and then putting more positive energy out there, putting the work in, working on myself and and then, slowly but surely, climbing the ladder.”

Cook says he became interested in running later in his life, according to CNN’s Ben Church, saying he had run from Istanbul to London and completing a marathon while pulling a car.  “Honestly, I’m actually not daunted by any of it,” Cook told CNN’s Ben Church on May 11, 2023 at the start of his journey.  “There’s no point worrying about it until it’s right in your face. We can plan and try to mitigate as much as we can along the way but none of these things keep me up at night. Handle the day, wake up, and handle tomorrow.”