‘That’s my life,’ says Japanese rickshaw puller at the end of 6,400km trek to South Africa

‘I couldn’t make it without you guys,’ Yuji ‘Gump’ Suzuki tells supporters after his six-month rickshaw pull from Nairobi to Cape Town

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Yuji “Gump” Suzuki, a Japanese runner and social media sensation, pulls his rickshaw past Mouilie Point Light House in Cape Town, South Africa, at the end of a journey of 6,400km from Kenya. It is the 34-year-old tour guide’s latest rickshaw-pulling feat. Photo: AFP

Published: 7:45pm, 27 Jan 2025

A 34-year-old Japanese man has arrived in Cape Town, ending a journey of more than 6,000 kilometres (3,700 miles) pulling a rickshaw from Kenya to South Africa.

Yuji “Gump” Suzuki was emotional as he thanked his supporters for their backing during his latest quest, which started in the Kenyan capital in July and took him through Tanzania, Zambia, Botswana and Namibia.

“I couldn’t make it without you guys,” Suzuki said. “I am running for fun.

“I have been travelling for nine years already and I get the power from you guys so I give you guys power, too. That’s my life.”

Yuji “Gump” Suzuki runs through the centre of Cape Town, South Africa, pulling his rickshaw near the end of a 6,400-kilometre journey from Nairobi, Kenya. Photo: AFP

Two Japanese supporters of Suzuki cross a road to follow him on the last leg of his journey from Nairobi pulling a 100kg rickshaw. Photo: AFP

Suzuki amid Sunday traffic in Cape Town near the end of his journey, which took him six months. Photo: AFP

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