Billy Cowley, Anél Alexander and two others will attempt to break a Guinness World Record on 6 December.
Supplied/The Marketing Zoo
- Billy Cowley, also known as the “Marmite man”, will be attempting to set another Guinness World Record on 6 December, this time to raise awareness around cancer.
- Cowley will be joined by three others – Babette Labuschagne, Anél Alexander and Kate Hayes – to place 6 000 ribbons on a car at a family event filled with music and prizes.
- Each ribbon will be dedicated to cancer survivors, someone who lost their lives to cancer or is currently battling it and will have the names of many loved ones.
One-time Guinness World Record holder Billy Cowley will attempt to set another record with a team of people who have gone through personal journeys with cancer.
Cowley, who is currently battling stage four colon cancer, has set out to break the awareness ribbon record.
This Saturday, 6 December, Cowley and three others will attempt to put 6 000 ribbons on a car at Renault Silver Lakes, beating out a record currently held by a Saudi Arabian team.
This, however, is not Cowley’s first Guinness World Record rodeo. In 2020, he set the record for eating the most Marmite in under a minute (420g) and later attempted to break the record for eating the most Nutella under similar parameters.
“Those first two were both eating records,” Cowley told News24 this week. “But obviously, cancer is something close to me because this is the second time that I’ve actually got cancer.
“I thought if we can do this, it’ll be just a tribute to everyone that’s got cancer.”
Billy Cowley and Babette Labuschagne will be participating in the attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the most awareness ribbons placed on a car.
Supplied/The Marketing Zoo
They have reached 25% of their minimum R180 000 target, and proceeds from the fundraiser will go towards assisting others going through similar journeys.
Names on ribbons
The current record holder is a Saudi Arabian team that managed to place 5 637 awareness ribbons on a car. Each ribbon symbolised the different types of cancer, usually indicated by an array of colours.
The dynamic South African team has put a personal spin on this challenge.
“We decided to put names on for people that passed away [from] cancer, survivors, plus family members. It’s actually grown bigger than what I thought,” Cowley said.
People have shown support for this initiative, “because this is something so sentimental to a lot of people now that you can put a loved one’s name on a ribbon”.
Ribbons marked with the names of cancer survivors, those battling it, and lost loved ones will form part of a world record attempt.
Supplied/The Marketing Zoo
An easy ‘yes’
While making plans for the attempt to break this record, Cowley knew that partnering with the correct people and organisations was key.
“I just said, ‘I don’t want people to come on just for fame’ or something like that. Babette I’ve known for many years. She was […] my first choice.”
READ | SA has relatively high anal cancer rates, but we rarely screen for it
Babette Labuschagne was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020 and recently celebrated five years of complete remission.
Anél Alexander was deemed a perfect candidate for this initiative because of her personal cancer awareness efforts following the loss of her husband to head and neck cancer.
And the youngest of the pack, Kate Hayes, is a cancer survivor.
Cowley continued:
Little Kate was a no-brainer to join our team as well.
“We are creating a lot of awareness with what we are doing.”
The initiative has met 25% of its goal. However, Cowley is determined not to “fail on giving the R180 000 minimum to [their charities of choice]”.
Labuschagne thought it was important to partner with Pink Drive, who support women who wouldn’t be able to access healthcare or mammograms otherwise, while Alexander is supporting Sungardens Hospice, which is close to her heart.
The big day, raffles, prizes and a family day out
Next Saturday, the foursome will be gearing up to write their names and South Africa’s into the record books. According to Cowley, it will be filled with lots of family fun.
“Babette’s going to sing on the day,” said Cowley.
“We’ve got literally some of the top musicians in South Africa performing on the day.”
They are also planning to cater for children, with jumping castles.
“There’s going to be stalls. There’s one guy that’s going to raffle a full sheep,” he added.
Ribbons for the challenge can be donated on their BackaBuddy campaign leading up to the event.
“Join us on the 6th and make donations there,” said Babette.
“We’re organising a lot of giveaways that people will be able to [enter for in] the raffle and win something.”
If you have an inspiring story to tell, email feelgood@news24.com.
