Jesper’s run around the world started on 1 January 2004 and took 22 months, covering 28 miles (45 km) a day on average.

On October 23, 2005, Danish ultra runner Jesper Olsen finished his 1st race around the world at age 33, which turned him into the youngest world runner. He ran 16,299 miles ( 26,232K) East-West in 662 days, crossing 14 countries on 4 continents.
By doing so he exceeded the distance of the first verified walk around the world by Dave Kunst (1970-1974), who covered 14,452 miles (23,123 km).

Alexander Korotkov gave up in central Siberia and then Jesper continued his run on his own.

During most of the journey Jesper pushed a baby stroller to carry food, beverages, a tent, and running gear, but in Russia and half of the USA he was aided by a support car, transporting his supplies.

“What fascinated me about doing such a long run was the opportunity to literally measure the world, not only by thought but by using my body as the medium to understand and experience the world.

How? Step by step and continent by continent; to understand the world, its vastness, its diversity, its cultures, and its nature; and its unity, if such thing exists.

What it really is beyond the books, television shows, documentaries and “snapshots” and “highlights” we usually experience,” Olsen describes in his book “The Runners Guide to the Planet.”

Image by Julius Silver