\n Eddie McGourley, from Houghton-le-Spring, set a new world record as the fastest octogenarian to complete the iconic Land\u2019s End to John O\u2019Groats route, finishing the more than 1,000-mile journey in style.\n<\/p>\n
\n The 83-year-old broke the previous record by three days, earning him a well-deserved spot in cycling history, while accompanied by his friend Stephen Foster, 71.\n<\/p>\n
\n Stephen Foster, 71, and Eddie McGourley, 83. (Image: St Cuthbert’s Hospice)\n<\/p>\n
\n He took on the challenge to raise funds for St Cuthbert\u2019s Hospice, where his late wife, Winifred, spent her final days.\n<\/p>\n
\n Mr McGourley said: “To finish the ride and know I’ve broken the record is an incredible feeling.\n<\/p>\n
\n “There were some tough days along the way, but I was determined to keep going.\n<\/p>\n
\n “This challenge was always about more than the record.\n<\/p>\n
\n “I wanted to do something special for St Cuthbert\u2019s Hospice because of everything they did for my wife and for our family.”\n<\/p>\n
\n Eddie McGourley, 83, and Stephen Foster, 71. (Image: St Cuthbert’s Hospice)\n<\/p>\n
\n Alex Lloyd, Community Fundraising and Supporter Engagement Coordinator at St Cuthbert\u2019s Hospice, said: “We are absolutely thrilled for Eddie.\n<\/p>\n
\n “To become a world record holder at 83 years old is a phenomenal achievement and one that deserves enormous recognition.\n<\/p>\n
\n “What makes this accomplishment even more special is the reason behind it.\n<\/p>\n
\n “Eddie has turned a deeply personal experience into something incredibly positive, helping to raise vital funds and awareness for St Cuthbert\u2019s Hospice.\n<\/p>\n
\n “Everyone at the hospice is immensely proud of what he has achieved and grateful for his support.”\n<\/p>\n
\n Supporters followed Mr McGourley\u2019s progress as he braved challenging weather, steep climbs and long days on the road.\n<\/p>\n
\n Despite the physical demands of the ride, he remained focused on his goal of giving back to the hospice that cared for his wife.\n<\/p>\n
\n He described the support from the public as “overwhelming,” and said he was thankful to all who had donated and sent messages of encouragement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Eddie McGourley, from Houghton-le-Spring, set a new world record as the fastest octogenarian to complete the iconic Land\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":686994,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-686993","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686993","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=686993"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686993\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/686994"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=686993"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=686993"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=686993"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}