Andrea completes a run around the world at St Christopher’s Hospice
Andrea, a 45-year-old nurse from Zurich, Switzerland, has spent the last 18 months running around the world. Her extraordinary 554-day journey concluded at St Christopher’s Hospice in June 2026.
Reflecting on her experience, Andrea describes the run as “a great journey to learn about myself, the world, and the kindness of people all around the world.”
Andrea will have completed her World Run according to the criteria established by the World Runners Association (WRA). Following ratification, she is expected to become the eighth person, third woman, and second-fastest person overall to have officially run around the world under WRA rules.
Andrea grew up in Zurich and began her working life in an unconventional way, completing a four-year apprenticeship as a car mechanic in the mid-1990s. After seven years in the trade, she travelled extensively, spending long periods in New Zealand and on the west coast of the United States before eventually returning to Switzerland.
In 2017, she retrained as a nurse and began working on an oncology ward, administering chemotherapy and blood transfusions. She says she was drawn to the emotional depth of nursing and the opportunity to connect with patients during significant moments in their lives.
“I love people, the work, and the existential conversations with my patients,” she says. “It feels meaningful and very rewarding.”
Her global run began at St Christopher’s Hospice on 21 December 2024. On a quiet winter morning shortly before 6 a.m., she set off from the hospice and ran to Land’s End before continuing westward around the globe.
Her route has taken her through Argentina, Chile, the United States, New Zealand, Australia, Japan, South Korea, India, and Europe. After running from Istanbul, Turkey, to La Coruña, Spain, she flew back to Croatia and continued through Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France, and finally back to the United Kingdom.
Throughout the journey, Andrea has relied largely on her own savings, supplemented by occasional donations and the kindness of strangers who have offered food, accommodation, and support along the way.
“People have been so generous,” she says.
“It’s not about money. It’s the hospitality, the conversations, and the humanity.”
Rather than focusing on fundraising, Andrea chose to use her run to raise awareness of palliative care, hospice care, and suicide prevention. She hopes her journey encourages people to speak more openly about death and dying before such conversations become urgent.
“I’m not a natural fundraiser,” she says. “But I would love for people to talk about death and dying before these issues become urgent in their own lives.”
Her decision to start and finish at St Christopher’s Hospice reflects a long-standing admiration for hospice and palliative care. She speaks warmly about several people who have inspired her, including Dame Cicely Saunders, Lotti Latrous, and Rosie Swale Pope.
“Hospice work has always touched me,” she says. “It’s about dignity, presence, compassion, and love. Ending my run at St Christopher’s feels right.”
After finishing her incredible journey, Andrea plans to spend a few days in the city with family, friends, and supporters before returning home to Switzerland.
Looking ahead, Andrea hopes to write a book about her experiences and continue sharing lessons from the journey through talks, events, and conversations about resilience, human connection, palliative and hospice care, and what it means to create your own path.
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