British duo set world record in run across Luxembourg

Cieran English and Joe Robson have taken the title for Guinness World Record for the fastest crossing of Luxembourg from north to south.

The two Englishmen undertook the non-stop ultra-marathon of 103 km from the northern tip of the country in Schmett, to Rumelange in the south, on 26 October 2024.

Whilst they initially forecast a time of 15 hours, the duo completed the run in just 13 hours, 30 minutes and 15 seconds.  

“Originally we just wanted to raise money for charity, but closer to the event we checked if there was a record, and we saw there was one on both the Guinness World Record and Fastest Known Time websites,” said English.

The previous record of 17 hours and 30 minutes was held by Pierre Daniel and Sheikh Mohamed Bin Abdulla Al Thani, who ran the same route in August 2023.

“We thought we could beat this record, and it was really good motivation.”

The route they took passed through Huldange, Weiswampach, Heinerscheid, Marnach, Hosingen, Ettelbruck, Colmar Berg, Tuntange, Nospelt, Capellen, Sanem, Wincrange, Schifflange, Kayl and Tetange.

“The first 50km we mainly ran on the road, but during the second half, the route was on trails with amazing views. We had great weather; we didn’t get hit by rain.”

The pair ate energy bars every hour, but English said they started to flag a little bit at the halfway mark close to the town of Ettelbruck.

Joined by friends and colleagues

“My girlfriend and two friends surprised us at this point, and spurred us on.  Between them, they ran with us for the next 40km, which made a massive difference.”

A few of English’s colleagues from the Luxembourg office of Ernst & Young also joined the duo for part of the route.

The two raised more than £5,000 for their chosen charities, Multiple Sclerosis UK and Brain Tumour Research.

“Luxembourg was a fantastic place to take on an ultra-marathon. The quality of the roads, free public transport and encouragement from local teams like Jeunesse FC all helped. We thoroughly enjoyed seeing the country and sampling some local Bofferding beer.”