BBC One’s Race Across the World reached its thrilling conclusion with best friends, Alfie and Owen, becoming the first pair to reach the final checkpoint in Lombok and claim the £20,000 prize.
After a nail-biting boat race to the finish, the friends, who are also the youngest ever pair to win, were declared winners of the 15,000km race across Eastern Asia.
They fought off incredibly tough competition from mother and daughter duo, Eugenie and Isabel, who gave it their all until the very end and came in just eight minutes behind them.
They were followed by brother and sister duo, Betty and James, while husband and wife, Stephen and Viv, came in fourth.
It was a sprint finish along the beach and into tropical waters for Alfie and Owen before they opened the guest book to discover they had reached the final checkpoint in first place. The best friends were overcome with elation, as they screamed “We’ve done it!” and hugged each other.
A jubilant Owen declared: “We came, and we saw, and we succeeded.”
Alfie added: “Best moment of our lives. Undeniably. Can’t believe it.”
Following their arrival on the beach just eight minutes later to claim second place, Eugenie said: “We did it. We’ve come in a good second. If we were to lose to anybody, we always said that we would want to lose to Alfie and Owen.” “They’re deserving of it as well, they’ve worked hard.”
The following day, 24 hours and 34 minutes behind the winners, Betty and James arrived in third place. James said: “We said no matter what, all we have to do is complete and to be third and not fourth that’s the bonus isn’t it?”
Betty added: “I think, coming away from this experience we’ve learnt how to communicate better, and we now both have an extra person to lean on if we need it, it’s amazing.”
Stephen and Viv, who later arrived in fourth place, 30 hours and 20 minutes behind race winners, said: “Gutted we’re not winning, obviously, but we’re so pleased for the boys. This is the end of the biggest adventure of our lives!”
The final episode saw Alfie and Owen began the last leg in the lead, but only a mere 12 minutes ahead of Eugenie and Isabel. They started in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta with more than 1,000km to conquer ahead of reaching the finish line in Lombok.
Despite making up good time during the leg, Alfie and Owen’s arrival in Bangsal on the island of Lombok posed a challenge as they discovered they had to catch a boat to the small island of Gili Meno, before they would receive further instructions about how to reach the finish line.
The pair discovered that the island is only accessible by boat during daylight hours, which meant they were forced to wait until morning before they could set off.
This delay allowed Eugenie and Isabel to close the gap and hot on the heels of Alfie and Owen the two pairs came head-to-head as they both waited for boats to Gili Meno.
A frustrated Alfie said: “I just can’t compute this at this time in the morning. I just feel like we’ve lost. I just feel defeated.”
However, Owen fought to remain positive: “For me that’s just not the way to think. We’re still in this. We have proven to ourselves so many times how giving up is just not an option. I know it’s hard to stay in a positive mental headspace, but it’s what we need right now, we just need to push through.”
At sunrise both teams secured boats, with each of them stressing the need for speed to their drivers. Both boats departed within seconds of one another and the high-speed race to Gili Meno commenced.
A determined Alfie shouted to his teammate: “All of the lessons we’ve learnt since leaving Sapporo 49 days ago, we’ve got to put them into action now! Everything has come down to this. Everything.”
As the first team to disembark their boat, Alfie and Owen received a message instructing them to head to the Masjid Mosque. Despite leaving their compass in their rucksack, the boys kept their cool and navigated their way to the temple where they were given further instructions for reaching the finish line, which was located on a beautiful white-sand beach.
After sprinting along the beach, the boys ran into the tropical waters where the guest book awaited them, and they discovered they had won the race of a lifetime and a prize of £20,000.
Over the eight-part series, the four pairs have travelled 15,000km over 50 days, crossing six seas and eight borders, they have been pushed to both their physical and emotional limits, but successfully completed the epic journey from northern-most part of Japan through to the finish line in the Indonesian island paradise of Lombok, all without the use of smartphones, internet access or bank cards and carrying only the cash equivalent of the airfare.
Following the final episode of Race Across the World, the teams will return for a heart-warming and revealing reunion special, which airs at 10.40pm on Wednesday 29 May on BBC One and will be available immediately after the final on BBC iPlayer.
The teams will look back at their thrilling adventure, where unseen moments will be shown and shocking revelations made. The pairs will also divulge how they prepared for the race, share stories on the wonderful food they tried, the local people they encountered, and the harsh realities of life on the road.
Catch up on all episodes of Race Across the World on BBC iPlayer.
The BAFTA-award winning series is the biggest BBC Factual title of the year to date, and the first two episodes are amongst the BBC’s top-rated episodes from any genre this year. They both attracted a massive 7.1 million viewers, nearly a million up on last year with almost half the audience watching on BBC iPlayer. The 16-34 audience was a huge 1.2 million, doubling the size of the previous series average.
Q&A with Alfie and Owen
How does it feel to have won Race Across the World?
Owen: Doing it was such a big thing. Getting on it was such a big part of it and doing it was such a big part of it. And then, I don’t know the winning just feels like an add-on even though the winning is technically the biggest part of it. I don’t know, you can’t really digest it.
Alfie: I think it just feels complete, to be honest. It feels like we took home some incredible memories, unbelievable experiences. We did this once in a lifetime thing with each other, being the youngest two to ever do it. And then to win it as well, I mean, it’s incredible.
Owen: Cherry on the top!
And can you sum the experience up in just a few words?
Owen: Difficult. Incredibly difficult, but incredibly rewarding. That’s how I would put it.
Alfie: I think if there’s one word for it, it is unforgettable.
Who did you tell first?
Owen: When I walked through the door and told my parents I had won the race, my mum started crying and my dad looked like he’d seen a ghost! My dog seemed pretty happy too!
Alfie: I told my nan and my uncle as soon as we got back and they couldn’t believe it. I think they knew the signs were good because I was happier than usual, but they’ve both just been itching to see it!
What do you plan on doing with the money?
Owen: I’ll definitely take my parents away, do something nice for them. And then you know, treat my brothers to a bit of money, get my brother out his overdraft, because I’m sure he will need that.
Alfie: I’m going to the Caribbean and then I need to go and live somewhere. So, I’m going to have to be sadly responsible with it… If it makes it through the Summer!
VHW