South Mayo man home after completing world record-breaking walk

It was the last mile of an almost unimaginable feat in human endeavor and Eamonn Keaveney was striding in the Balla Road towards The Square in Claremorris. Orla Sweeney, hoisting the blue and white flag of Claremorris, along with her sister Una Monaghan, were alongside Eamonn with his back-pack, proudly displaying the Mayo flag, as he headed into the Guinness Book of Records.

Back on March 4, 2025, Eamonn embarked on his mammoth journey to walk barefoot from Sarayburnu Park in Istanbul, Turkey, to his hometown of Claremorris. The journey of over 6,805.83km (4,228 miles) took him through several European countries including Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Austria, Germany, France, England and Wales before he eventually set foot on Irish soil again.

Eamonn (33), who nominated Jigsaw and Friends of the Earth as the beneficiaries from sponsorship raised through this massive record-breaking venture, not alone broke the previous record of record distance of 3,409.75km but completely eclipsed by doubling it in total. His achievement may never be equaled again.

His mother, Dolores, who served for several years as station master with Iarnród Éireann at Claremorris Railway Station, had every reason to be immensely proud of Eamonn’s incredible achievement: “Eamonn’s journey has been a history and geography lesson and also one of humanity. People have been following his travels in Instagram and social media.

“The people from all the different nations that he passed through were so nice to him. People put him up in their homes and in various places of accommodation. It goes to show there is still a bit of light in this world. We are so proud of Eamonn. People looking down on us from above are also very proud of you, Eamonn,” said Dolores.

There was that warm glow of ‘bringing it all back home’ for Eamonn as he accepted the handshakes of many who had gathered in The Square to welcome him home after 369 days since he took the first steps in Turkey.

“It is surreal to be returning to Claremorris after so long and it was lovely that so many came out to welcome me as well. I met so many lovely people from Turkey to Ireland and I can’t remember a single encounter with people who were not nice to me. There were some special small towns along the journey that I would recommend people to search out if they are visiting those countries.”

John Farragher and the folks from Claremorris Community Radio were on hand to broadcast the homecoming live and do a brief interview with Eamonn and his mother, Dolores, who has been closely associated with presenting shows on the station over the years.

Sponsorship raised during the mammoth endurance venture will be shared between Jigsaw, a youth mental health charity in Ireland offering free therapy and support to children and young people aged 12 to 25, and Friends of the Earth (Ireland).

After completing the necessary official documentation overseen by Tom Byrne, Richard Carney and Jimmy Flynn, it was time for Eamonn, in his own words, to ‘head to Warde’s to enjoy a long awaited pint’. Warmest congratulations, Eamonn, on this truly amazing achievement. Up Mayo!

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