A SRI LANKAN student will tomorrow begin his attempt to break his own Guinness World Record for continuous running.
The 24-year-old, simply named Ashan, will be trying to run non-stop around the island for a period of nine days.
According to Guinness regulations, he is permitted to stop for five minutes every hour and must complete 16 hours of running per day between 5am and 9pm to be eligible for the record.
He is expected to cover 700 kilometres during the attempt, which will begin from the capital’s Eleftheria Sqaure and pass through towns and villages in the Nicosia, Larnaca, Limassol and Paphos districts over different terrain.
Ashan, who is studying hotel management at Intercollege, which is the event’s main sponsor, told the Mail that he will be representing Cyprus as the island has never previously made it into the Guinness book in a sporting category.
“I have been training hard for the past nine months, doing running and gym work as well as yoga, which I hope will help me with the mental side of things,” he said.
When asked what he will be eating and drinking during the nine days, Ashan said he has ordered plenty of bananas, chocolates, energy bars, water and saline solutions.
“Sleep will also be very difficult and I only expect to get in around three hours every night.”
John Mavris, Director of Communications at Intercollege, explained that “medical staff provided by the Health Ministry will be keeping a close eye on Ashan, with a police escort accompanying him during his effort.”
Ashan, who has been long-distance running since the age of 12, is no stranger to world records. In 1998 he set his first Guinness Record, continuously running 295 kilometres in 48 hours. His second record saw him cover 590km in seven days, while his third, set in his native Sri Lanka in 2002, was over a period of eight days, covering a distance of 680 km.
Representatives from Guinness will be on the island to follow his progress in order to verify the attempt and, if successful, President Tassos Papadopoulos is expected to bestow upon him a special achievement award.
“I don’t want to stop here,” Ashan said. My dream is to one day attempt a 70-day run from Los Angeles to Rio de Janeiro.”
