Walked 6,805 kilometers barefoot: Irish man breaks Guinness record

34-year-old Irishman Eamonn Keaveney has entered the Guinness Book of Records by walking 6,805.83 kilometers barefoot from Istanbul to Ireland. After a 369-day journey, he arrived in his hometown of Claremorris in County Mayo on March 7, 2026. This was reported by Guinness World Records.

Along the way, Keaveney passed through the territories of Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Austria, Germany, France, England, and Wales. Throughout the trip, his feet were injured by thorns, broken glass, and asphalt. On one occasion, an injury sustained while removing a thorny bush became infected, forcing him to stop walking for a week.

This is Keaveney's second barefoot walking record. In 2016, he covered 2,080.14 kilometers across Ireland. In 2024, Polish national Pawel Durakiewicz broke this record with a result of 3,409.75 kilometers. With his new achievement, Keaveney reclaimed the record.

During the journey, the traveler also received help from local residents. When he was bitten by a dog in Turkey and searched for a hospital to get a rabies vaccination, a local family helped him.

In 2023, Keaveney also set the men's record for the fastest unicycle crossing of Ireland. Currently, he is recovering after his long journey.