Although she became an unofficial Guinness World Record holder on the last day of 2020, Nelson Mandela Bay entrepreneur and animal enthusiast, Sharon Jessop, has not rested a day in her endeavours to raise even more awareness around rhino poaching and has been training non-stop to run the Addo 100 miler in March.
Jessop became the pride of the metro, after she completed 101 consecutive half marathons and became the unofficial Guinness World Record holder on December 31, last year for the most consecutive half marathon distances run by a female. The 50-year-old also raised more than R40 000 for the One Land Love It (OLLI) foundation for rhino conservation and anti-poaching and the Community Chest of the Eastern Cape.
She is currently busy uploading all her evidence onto the back end of the Guinness World Record’s website. Once everything is uploaded, they will review the evidence and get back to her after approximately three months on whether her attempt was successful.
Jessop describes her record-breaking experience as surreal. “It feels amazing but some days I have to pinch myself to make sure I am awake and didn’t dream it.”
Apart from training for the Addo 100 Miler, Jessop will also be doing the Tusker, an almost 400km race that connects the three mega reserves: the Addo Elephant National Park, Baviaanskloof Reserve and the Garden Route National Park.
Jessop also has an eye on another major goal for OLLI in September this year: running from the Mozambique border back to Nelson Mandela Bay, symbolically linking all the reserves containing rhinos.
“I have all these other races that I am preparing for so I am pretty sure that my fitness levels will get me there,” she explained.
The only thing that could hamper her plans is the national lockdown. “No races are allowed under level three of lockdown, but we can still train. So, unless we move to level two during February, the Addo race will not happen. We are training as if it will happen though and remain positive. As for the expedition, I will be running alone so unless interprovincial travel is halted again it will not affect me,” she said.
Mayor of Nelson Mandela Bay, Nqaba Bhanga, said that Jessop’s initiative would go a long way in assisting the OLLI Foundation and Community Chest Eastern Cape.
“Both these organisations are making a difference in this world.
“We acknowledge the positive role you play in Nelson Mandela Bay and society at large. Your courage and determination is an inspiration to others who want to embark on similar challenges,” he told Jessop.
