Kilimanjaro obstacle course attempt 'a bit scary'

Ms Jogi said she had "always been a go-getter" and just "wanted to challenge myself"

A woman who is aiming to climb Africa's highest peak and then do an obstacle course at the summit has said the challenge is "a bit scary".

Blackburn's Zaynab Jogi will try to set the record for completing the highest obstacle course during a 10-day hike up Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.

The 32-year-old charity worker will join about 40 others in the attempt, which begins on 12 September.

She said getting the record was key or it might "feel like a wasted trip".

About 40 people will try and complete the course at the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro

Ms Jogi, a keen hiker and martial arts enthusiast since her teenage years, said when she signed up for the challenge "I didn't think of it that much" as she had "always been a go-getter" and had just "wanted to challenge myself".

However, now the challenge is upon her, she said she was "extremely excited but also very nervous" to tackle the course, which will involve carrying sandbags, crawling on cargo nets and traversing monkey bars at the summit of the mountain.

"It's key to get the world record, otherwise I won't be satisfied and it'll feel like a wasted trip," she said

"I have to do it to prove to all that, with focus and hard work, things are achievable."

The 32-year-old has been a martial arts enthusiast since she was a teenager

Ms Jogi, who runs evening fitness classes, said she hoped her challenge would inspire fellow residents of the Lancashire town, which has been a Covid-19 hotspot during the pandemic, to do more exercise.

"There's a lack of routine and motivation, and there's obesity... where people have been sat at home during lockdown, gaining weight, and they're not so bothered now," she said.

"I think we've got to get back to normality a little bit now."

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