The winners of the 2026 series of Race Across The World have been unveiled, with the victorious duo sharing their aspirations for the £20,000 prize money. The hit BBC show, which first aired in 2019, challenges pairs of contestants to be the first to reach a designated global destination without using air travel.
Epic Journey Across Continents
This season saw the teams start their adventure in Sicily, covering a staggering 12,000 kilometres across Europe and Asia to reach Hatgal, Mongolia. The two-part finale aired on Thursday, crowning childhood best friends Jo Diop and Kush Burman, both 19 and hailing from Liverpool, as the champions.
The pair celebrated their triumph by playfully piling up in the snow, visibly thrilled. Kush exclaimed, 'I can't put it into words bro!', with Jo echoing, 'That's how I feel bro.' After officially inscribing their names in the final book, Jo remarked, 'The dream from the start was opening the final book and seeing it empty, so that actually happening… it's hard to get my head around it.' Kush added, 'I hope we did Liverpool proud. Big up scousers!'
Prize Money Plans
Speaking to the BBC, Kush and Jo detailed how they intend to use their £20,000 winnings. Kush said, 'I'm definitely going to invest a fair amount into my future, and when I say invest into my future, I will invest into what I enjoy doing to hopefully build a career out of it, like travelling. Whatever is left is going straight into a savings account to go on a deposit for a house.' Jo shared, 'I want to spend some on my family and then a nice trip away, a holiday, but the majority of it will go into an ISA so hopefully I can buy a house sooner.'
Runner-Up and Other Teams
Father and daughter duo Andrew Clifford, 54, and Molly Clifford, 23, finished as runners-up, arriving three hours behind the winners. Andrew commented, 'Congratulations to the boys. We had a tough final leg… We're three hours behind the lads. What an achievement.' Molly added, 'I didn't actually physically think we were going to make it, but we did it!'
Siblings Katie Devine, 21, and Harrison Devine, 23, secured third place, arriving three hours after Andrew and Molly. Harrison expressed, 'We couldn't have done this any better this leg, and we've made it to Hatgal. And we've done it together. I could still just cry with pride and joy that we're here.'
In-laws Mark Blythen, 66, and Margo Oakley, 59, placed fourth. They undertook the race in memory of Julia, Mark's late wife who was Margo's sister. Mark said, 'I couldn't have done it without you Marg, a true friend. And Julia would be really proud of us!' Margo added, 'We haven't won THE race, but we've won OUR race and we have come in fashionably late.' The pair exclaimed, 'Thank you Julia!' with Margo continuing, 'She's laughing saying go get yourselves a drink, you deserve it, you mad fools.'
A fifth pair, cousins Puja and Roshni, exited earlier in the competition. Race Across The World airs on BBC One and iPlayer.
