On Friday 15th February at 1530, Mark Beaumont completed his 18,000 miles circumnavigation of the globe by bicycle. Mark arrived back at the Arc de Triomphe 194 days and 17 hours after leaving there on 5th August 2007. Total distance cycled was 18,297 miles through 20 countries. Guinness World Records have verified all the data and confirmed Mark is the new Guinness World Record holder! The official GWR certificate was presented to Mark by David Peat on Saturday 23rd February at his Welcome Home Celebration in the Radisson Hotel, Glasgow.

“In addition to the personal ambition of setting a new Guinness World Record, I am cycling to raise awareness and money for five fantastic charities and would really like your support.

The charities are Community Action Nepal, CHICKS, Cyrenians, Rainer and Tusk. Please take a moment to visit their websites and learn more about the wonderful work they do, then visit my Just Giving page and make a donation. It’s really easy and all donations are secure and electronically sent to The Artemis Charitable Foundation. If you prefer to donate by cheque then please make cheques payable to Mark Beaumont Pedalling Around and send to Una Beaumont, Fliskmillan Cottage, Newburgh, Cupar Fife KY14 6HN. Please get involved in the success of the World Record Expedition Cycle by supporting the charities which I am cycling for and encouraging others to do the same.

Another way is to buy yourself or someone else a unique replica cycle top as seen top left - without the road grime! Thanks and best wishes, Mark”

You can follow the full adventure as it happens right here, via the online BBC documentary, Web Diary and GPS tracker. If you are a media interest then please contact alanferguson@thesportsbusiness.co.uk or via their website, www.thesportsbusiness.co.uk.

The current Guinness World Record for cycling around the world is 276 days 19 hrs 15 min - just over 9 months. Mark is planning to smash this by cycling around the globe in under 210 days. This seven month race will include 20 countries through Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australasia and North America before finishing from Lisbon, Portugal back to the finish line in Paris. See the Route here.

After over a year of planning and training Mark is looking forwards to this ultra endurance challenge. Enjoy exploring the website to find out about the facts, people, history and plans behind this Scottish bid to break the ultimate endurance cycling World Record. If you are inspired/intrigued/intimidated or just interested in this expedition then please feel free to leave a comment in the guestbook or on a diary entry – all support, advice and contacts are welcome.

At this stage a huge thanks must go to all the sponsors who have made this expedition possible and to the hard work of a fantastic support team. Support has also come from His Royal Highness Prince Philip and acclaimed mountaineer Doug Scott CBE who agree that this is a fantastic opportunity to promote youth enterprise and activity.