The Tribune

MICHAEL Cunningham has completed all eight Abbott World Marathon Majors - Berlin, Cape Town, Boston, New York, London, Tokyo, Sydney, and Chicago - to become the second Bahamian to achieve this remarkable milestone.

Cunningham completed the Cape Town Marathon (26.2 miles) in May and added the Sydney Marathon to his impressive résumé on Sunday, August 30. There were over 41,000 participants as the Sydney marathon tested runners with numerous climbs, including the iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge. This marathon is considered the most difficult of the eight Abbott majors.

The men’s race was won by 21-year-old Ethiopian Addisu Gobena, who broke the course record with a time of two hours, four minutes and 42 seconds (2:04:42). Meanwhile, reigning world champion Peres Jepchirchir won the women’s race in 2:18:31, finishing just nine seconds short of Sifan Hassan’s course record.

For Cunningham, however, the significance of the Sydney marathon extended far beyond the race itself. Completing the event marked another major achievement in a remarkable marathon journey that has taken him around the world.

His next goal is to complete marathons on all seven continents by March next year, with Antarctica as his final stop - he has already finished six.

Michael Cunningham is also the current president of the Bahamas Roadmasters Running Club, an organisation dedicated to people interested in long-distance running, particularly marathon running.

His achievement is another testament to perseverance and discipline to pursuing extraordinary goals.

The first Bahamian to complete all eight Abbott World Marathon Majors was Neville Wilson.