Tope Maggie, an Ogbomoso-native Chef has embarked on a bold endeavor  aiming to break the Guinness World Record (GWR) for the longest cooking marathon.

Biztellers reports that Maggie has set an ambitious 200-hour target, equivalent to at least eight days. The ‘cook-a-thon’ is billed for the Ogbomoso Recreation Club.

The cooking marathon commenced on Thursday at 6 pm.

Maggie was motivated to pursue his goal after Hilda Effiong Bassey, also known as Hilda Baci, broke the previous GWR held by Lata Tondon, an Indian.

Hilda cooked non-stop for 100 hours (4 days), although 7 hours were later deducted as a penalty for mistakenly extending one of her rest breaks early in the attempt.

She showcased her culinary skills by preparing over 100 pots of food, primarily featuring Nigerian cuisines, during the contest thereby surpassing Tondon’s record of 87 hours and 45 minutes,  which stood for 4 years.

However, an Irish chef Alan Fisher made headlines by sensationally breaking Hilda’s GWR by cooking for an impressive 119 hours and 57 minutes.

This achievement exceeded the previous record by more than 24 hours. Fisher, the owner and chef of a restaurant in Japan, claimed the new title.

Notably, Maggie, who has owned and operated restaurants in Ogbomoso for years, is also venturing into this challenging realm.

Anticipation is high as the venue is expected to be filled with numerous supporters cheering Maggie on in his pursuit of the ambitious goal.

Maggie, confident in the attainability of his objective, reassured his fans in a voice note obtained by ogbomosoinsightonline.com on Wednesday evening. He expressed readiness and high spirits for the contest, calling for prayers and support.

He was heard saying “Good evening everyone and thank you for the support and everything you have been doing for me.

“As you know we are going to start the cook-a-thon tomorrow (today) and we are going for at least 200 hours, that is about eight days, non-stop.

“l need you guys to at least pray for me and l want you to be calm and have trust in me and in God. It is going to be successful. I need your prayer and to watch me wherever you are. God will bless you.”

According to one of his team members, Seun Ogunbiyi, the chef is in need of support from Nigerians in terms of foodstuffs and financial assistance.

Ogunbiyi mentioned, “We still have a very long way to go in terms of those. But there is no cause for alarm; he assures he will not disappoint.”