On Sunday, Dr Nsikak Akpan, a lecturer at Foreign Links College of Health Sciences in Moro, Osun State, set a new world record for the longest marathon lecture.
While discussing with journalists ahead of the event, which was held on the college’s campus, Akpan revealed that his application to Guinness World Records, with the reference number 240427100506lml, to participate in the 150-hour longest marathon lecture had been granted.
He smashed the previous record at around 4:30 a.m. on Sunday, surpassing Prof. Arvin Mishra of India’s record of 139 hours 52 minutes 42 seconds, set in 2014.
He did, however, meet his goal of 150 hours of lecturing by 2:30 p.m., eliciting jubilation from his audience, which was primarily made up of students and journalists.
Responding to journalists’ enquiries, the exhausted Akpan, who had a medical emergency on Friday and needed to be hospitalised before continuing with the challenge, said, “It took us two to three months to organise this.
“When the incident (sickness) happened, I didn’t consider or think about quitting. I was prepared for it and I kept on without thinking about the situation. I was treated, and when I was certified fit to continue, I returned.
When asked about the problems he had to contend with in the process of accomplishing the intended aim, the professor replied, “Some people thought we would not achieve this because of money. But we have achieved it without them.
“Challenges will always come but for anyone that wants to succeed, you must not look at them. Continue without looking at them and you will succeed. I don’t feel tired, I feel like I want to continue.”