Aussie runner Nedd Brockmann has completed an incredible 1,600km run to raise money for homelessness.
Brockmann crossed the finish line just after 6.15am on Wednesday, having covered the distance in just over 12 and a half days at Sydney Olympic Park’s running track.
He began his epic journey on October 3, aiming to break the world record for running 1,600km in 10 days, while also raising $10 million for the homelessness charity, We Are Mobilise.
Although injuries prevented him from beating the world record, Brockmann has still managed to raise more than $1.8 million for the cause.
He broke down in tears as he completed his final lap around Sydney’s Olympic Park, where he was surrounded by cheering friends and family.
Having run the equivalent of more than 38 marathons in under two weeks, the cult-hero collapsed at the finish line.
‘I’ve never ever been through something like that before,’ he said after crossing the line.
‘I’m f***ing proud of that.’
Brockmann was attempting to break the world record for running 1,609 kilometres set in 1988 by Greek ultra-marathon legend Yiannis Kouros, with a time of 10 days, 10 hours, 30 minutes, and 36 seconds.
To succeed, he would have had to cover 161 kilometres per day, which equates to running 403 laps of a 400-metre track each day for 10 days, aiming to finish by 3am on Monday.
Brockmann first rose to fame after running from Cottesloe Beach in Perth to Bondi Beach in Sydney, in just 47 days in 2022.
‘It has been hell and that’s why I love it,’ he previously said.
Having gotten off to a blistering pace for the first three days of the challenge, the minimal sleep and recurring injuries slowed him down significantly.
On day 10, he shared an update on his Instagram, stating that even though he didn’t break the record, he would keep going until he reached 1600km.
‘As humans, I believe it is our duty to see things through,’ he wrote in the post.
‘This 1000 miles around that track has been the most humbling experience of my life.
‘Never have I ever felt so many emotions to the absolute peak of them all.
‘I’ve had no function of my right ant tib (tibialis anterior) since the end of day three, so I’ve been snapping dictus band rubbers left right and centre.
‘No sleep because the tendinitis everywhere punches me in the throat come rest time.
‘The feet have swollen three sizes due to the rain/track. It’s healthy stuff.’
Brockmann refused to sleep for the final 24 hours before finishing the challenge as the athletics track was being claimed back later that day.
His ‘morning routine’ included waking up at 5am to have his shins, feet, shoulders and nipples strapped before being taken to the track in a wheelchair.
Olympic champion Jess Fox and UFC fighter Israel Adesanya were among the number of athletes who ran by his side for parts of the challenge.
Brockmann also invited year nine student Hugo Russell to run a lap with him after the boy was banned from running by ‘s peak athletics body because he suffers from a form of dwarfism.
Hugo was born with the genetic disorder achondroplasia, the most common form of short-limbed dwarfism.
On the track, the pair spoke about how Brockmann wants Hugo to become a Challenge Champion for Nedd’s Uncomfortable Challenge.