- Nedd Brockmann has battled several injuries over last 12 days
- Says he didn’t have a single moment of joy during gruelling run
- Widely praised for raising $2.7 million for homelessness charity
After completing an 1,600km fundraising run to combat homelessness in just 12 days, an emotional Nedd Brockmann has opened up about the horrible effects it has had on his body and mind.
Brockmann crossed the finish line at 6.15am on Wednesday, having covered the distance by running 4,000 laps of Sydney Olympic Park’s athletics track in just over 12.5 days.
He began his epic effort on October 3, aiming to break the world record of running 1,600km in 10 days, while raising money for the homelessness charity We Are Mobilise.
Although injuries and consequent crippling pain prevented him from breaking the record, Brockmann – who famously ran from Perth to Sydney in 47 days – still managed to raise more than $2.7 million for the cause.
He broke down in tears as he completed his final lap around Sydney’s Olympic Park before hugging his mum Kylie and dad Ian.
Having run the equivalent of more than 38 marathons in less than two weeks, the cult hero collapsed to the ground.
‘I’ve been quite overwhelmed, I didn’t have any fun in the last 12 days,’ Brockmann said on a TikTok live stream.
‘Usually in these things I can find some joy in it and some moments of reprieve, but I actually found there was not a minute of that.
Nedd Brockmann struggled with injuries throughout the run (pictured with his shins strapped and nipples taped to avoid chafing)
The Australian long-distance running legend says he didn’t have any fun as he battled a range of agonising injuries for 12 days
‘If I was in the shower getting ready, I was wasting time. If I was on the physio table, I was wasting time. There was never any calm.
‘The last 12 and a half days have been no doubt the hardest of my life, 10 times harder than the run across Oz.
‘I’m just chuffed to be done.’
Brockmann suffered a serious injury to a muscle around his shin in August that impacted his preparation, and the same injury reoccurred just three days into the challenge.
Pretty soon his other shin was giving him grief, his feet has swelled up so much he went up three shoe sizes, and ‘tendinitis everywhere’ reduced him to moving at a shuffle.
The former electrician had his share of celebrity guests during the event with Olympic champion Jess Fox, UFC fighter Israel Adesanya and boxer Harry Garside among the athletes who ran by his side.
Brockmann also invited year nine student Hugo Russell to run a lap with him after the boy was banned from running by Australia’s peak athletics body because he has a form of dwarfism.
Brockmann suffered a serious shin injury in August that flared up just three days into the challenge, leaving him in agony
His feet swelled up so much he went up three shoe sizes, making something as simple as just standing up incredibly painful
Aussie writer Jill Stark faced intense backlash for labelling Brockmann’s run ‘toxic masculinity rebranded’.
She argued that the charity runner’s inspiring feat reflected the tendency of men to rebrand their struggles with mental health problems as ‘toughness’.
While applauding Brockmann’s ‘admirable job’ raising money for charity, Stark said she was also concerned with the way men regard torment as a chance to prove themselves.
His official time for the run was 12 days, 13 hours and 45 seconds, making him the second-fastest Aussie to run 1,000 miles, and placed him in the top 10 in the world over the distance.
‘I’ve never ever been through something like that before,’ he said while lying on the track after the race.
‘I’m f***ing proud of that.’
