Lael Wilcox, a 38-year-old athlete from the United States, completed a round-the-world bike ride in a record 108 days, 12 hours, 12 minutes, setting a new world record for women, pravilamag.ru reports, citing the BBC.

Wilcox’s journey began on May 28 in Chicago. Having covered the distance to New York, she flew to Portugal, from where she continued her route. During her journey, the athlete crossed the borders of 21 countries on four continents, riding a total of 29,169 km. Wilcox finished on September 12, returning to Chicago.

Wilcox spent 12 to 14 hours a day on the road. Experts note that cyclists who cover ultra-long distances can burn from 6 to 10 thousand calories a day.

Wilcox’s achievement meets all the requirements of the Guinness Book of World Records for recording a round-the-world bicycle trip:

The start and finish must be at the same point.

The journey must be in one direction only.

The total distance, including flights and trips on other modes of transport, must be at least 40 000 km.

The minimum distance traveled by bike must be 28 970 km.

The previous record belonged to 44-year-old Scotswoman Jenny Graham, who in 2018 completed a round-the-world trip in 124 days, 10 hours and 50 minutes, visiting 15 countries.