Sport

The Hardest Geezer is back at it again as he begins his run to Germany for Euro 2024

'Back on the einser und zweier.'

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 12th June 2024

Just two months after completing the entire length of Africa, Russ Cook a.k.a. ‘Hardest Geezer’ is back out on the road once again and has set himself the challenge of running all the way to Germany for Euro 2024.

Does this guy ever just have a sit-down?

The 27-year-old fundraising athlete from Worthing in West Sussex has barely had any time off since becoming the first person to run the entire length of Africa over the course of 352 days, even chucking in a casual London Marathon just a fortnight after achieving the incredible feat.

Now, though, the Hardest Geezer grind is back underway as Cook set off from Wembley at 3:30pm on Tuesday, 11 June and intends to make it all the way to the Veltins Arena in Germany for England’s opening game against Serbia on Sunday.

Jumping back on social media to track the entire challenge just as he did for the last 12 months, the inspiring endurance runner is hoping to follow the Three Lions across the country in an effort to support them and raise money for charity throughout the Euros.

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Set to run from city to city for each fixture, his journey – at the very least – will see him travel from England’s opener in Gelsenkirchen to the Waldstadion in Frankfurt for the second game against Denmark, before moving on to FC Koln’s RheinEnergieStadion for the Slovenia match on 25 June.

However, should Gareth Southgate’s side make it through the group stages (you better believe they will), Russ is prepared to follow the boys throughout the tournament and is welcoming others to come and join him for the multiple legs in what he admits is “a race against the clock”.

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He’s also already joked that he’d be willing to sort what’s for tea if someone can sort him a bed when he makes his first stop in Harwich on Wednesday evening.

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Having worn classic England shirts on numerous occasions throughout the course of his run across the African continent, seeing him wearing Three Lions on the shirt will be a familiar sight, having also been sponsored by retro replica kit manufacturer Score Draw to keep the national team colours on show.

The best part about all of this other than us getting to tune into the Hardest Geezer’s journey every day is that he is once again raising money for The Running Charity, the same non-profit he raised over £1 million through Project Africa.

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The organisation supports young people who are homeless or have complex needs and Cook is also choosing to donate his sponsorship fees from both Score Draw and fellow retailer Sports Direct directly to the cause. What a legend.

We’re now more hopeful than ever that England make it all the way to the final; what a story it would be, especially if he can provide some added motivation and national spirit, as well as raise even more money for a vital cause along the way. It’s coming home – just not before big Russ gets to Germany.

Russ Cook, a.k.a. ‘Hardest Geezer’, is spurring on an entirely new generation of runners
The Hardest Geezer has smashed Africa and is now putting in the hard yards for Euro 2024 in Germany – a true inspiration.

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Featured Images — Hardest Geezer (via Instagram)/Raimond Spekking (via Wikimedia Commons)

Sport

Details released of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners while Mayor

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Andy Burnham outside Number 10 Downing Street

Details of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners during his tenure as Mayor of Greater Manchester have been released.

In case you need bringing up to speed on the situation a little first, Manchester City was found guilty back in September all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and on top of that, was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.

According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors.

These were part of a disguised funding scheme – with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.

The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.

The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.

Man City release statement after being found guilty of all charges related to Premier League’s financial rules

Within the past week or so, it has since come to light that now-Prime Minister Andy Burnham had dealings with Manchester City during his tenure as Greater Manchester Mayor, and Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has now issued a public statement, giving details on the matter and what these ‘dealings’ entailed.

A spokesperson for GMCA confirmed that Burnham had a ‘formal meeting’ with Man City Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, back in October 2021.

The statement reads in full: “In October 2021, Andy Burnham, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, had a formal meeting with Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the UK Government’s Global Investment Summit arranged by the Department for International Trade.

“In his capacity as Mayor, he was a guest of Manchester City FC at home matches on a small number of occasions, including attending Vincent Kompany’s testimonial match in September 2019, where he met the Chairman informally in the stands. These have been declared in the usual way.

“Also during his time as Mayor, representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would routinely join business delegations as part of Mayoral international visits.

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“This included representatives from Manchester United travelling to Austin and Dublin, Lancashire Cricket Club joining a delegation to India, and Manchester City FC staff supporting visits to China and Japan.”

Featured Image – Lauren Hurley / Number 10 Downing Street (Press Image via Flickr)


Sport

Multiple arrests made for ‘tragedy chanting’ and police officer assault as Man City defeated Liverpool

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Multiple people were arrested over the weekend as Manchester City defeated Liverpool in a Premier League clash.

Merseyside Police have confirmed that a total of 10 people were arrested during the policing operation at Liverpool’s home ground of Anfield as they hosted Manchester City on Sunday 11 October.

One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police constable, five were on suspicion of tragedy chanting, one on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, two for affray, and one on suspicion of throwing items onto the pitch.

Police are now appealing to the public, and are particularly looking to speak to witnesses of the assault of the officer.

At around 6:35pm, as fans left the stadium, a police officer sustained a ‘serious facial injury’ during the arrest of a man on Anfield Road, and was subsequently taken to hospital for treatment but is now recovering at home.

Investigating officers are now conducting enquiries, speaking to witnesses, and analysing CCTV and camera phone footage.

Chief Inspector Leanne Hobin said it’s ‘extremely disappointing’ that an officer has sustained a serious injury while carrying out their duty.

“I hope the arrests send a clear message and act as a deterrent to others,” Chief Inspector Hobin continued. “Anyone who engages in this abhorrent behaviour risks ending up in custody and getting a criminal record.

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“Despite the actions of a few, the overwhelming majority of the 60,000 fans in attendance behaved well and I want to thank them for their co-operation.”

Manchester City ended up defeated Liverpool 3-0 during the Premier League clash at Anfield.

Featured Image – Rawpixel

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