Chef Faila Abdul-Razak, a Ghanaian, made an incredible attempt to break the record for the longest cook-a-thon by committing to a 227-hour culinary journey spread over ten days.
But along with her incredible achievement came a terrifying and unanticipated experience that put her resilience and her team’s commitment to the test.
In a press conference following the cook-a-thon on Wednesday, January 10, Chef Faila revealed a terrifying experience that happened the evening before she started her daring culinary project at Tamale’s Modern City Hotel.
Remembering the experience, Chef Faila said, “The very night I came here to embark on this project, it was terrible. I laid on my bed in one of the rooms of this hotel, and it took grace to wake me up because I couldn’t get up, I couldn’t open my eyes, I couldn’t lift my hand, I couldn’t lift my leg.”
The chef, who was healthy prior to coming to the hotel, had an unexplained, almost paralyzing experience that caused her team members to become concerned. She gave thanks to God for her recovery and her medical team’s prompt attention.
“I wasn’t sick before getting into this premises, but it happened out of the blue moon. It was tough, they got confused; what are we telling the public? What are we telling the media? What are we telling even the government who is interested in this? It took the grace of God and the medical team going up and down to wake me up, and when I woke up, I still couldn’t walk,” she continued emotionally.
Chef Faila conveyed her appreciation to her staff, management, and the medical experts who were instrumental in her recuperation. “I looked at my team, my management, I looked into the faces of each and every one of them in that room and I cried. I cried because I didn’t owe anyone as much as I owed them for all the effort and support,” she said.
Chef Faila Abdul-Razak overcame a difficult start to successfully finish the cook-a-thon; Guinness World Records is awaiting official confirmation. Her adventure demonstrated not only her culinary prowess but also the fortitude and commitment of a group of people driven to overcome unforeseen setbacks in the name of setting new records.
🚨ICYMI🇬🇭👩🍳🏆: Chef @FailaAbdulRazak speaks for the first time after breaking the @GWR record for the longest cookathon by a single individual.
“The very night I came here to embark on this project, it was terrible. It took grace to get me up..”
📹: @JoyPrimeTV
🦅🇬🇭 https://t.co/YqraDzcLZG pic.twitter.com/cGSfTRg57i
— Ölele | DTS👨🏾🍳🇬🇭 (@OleleSalvador) January 10, 2024
