Feature'A lot of emotions' - LFC fan Jack Faint completes remarkable run of India

Some days he would opt to wear the colours of the Liver bird across his chest as he set off on his meticulously planned route, while on other occasions the feeling wasn't quite right.

"There was no real thought of when I should and shouldn't wear it - I guess it was just based on gut and feel," he tells Liverpoolfc.com.

"Sometimes I'd think, 'I'm going to don the Reds today' and see how I was going to get on. My mum and dad gave me that as a surprise gift just before I started, with 'Project India 4000' on the back.

"I hadn't received Arne Slot's letter by the first time I wore it, I think it was the day after - but I remember the day I had worn it for the first time, it was probably one of the hardest but best days we had in the whole Himalayan journey. We'd been up some massive mountain passes, and we'd managed to get about 54 kilometres in and then Arne's letter arrived."

A message from the Liverpool head coach wishing him well in his endeavours kept morale high in the early stages of what was a daunting task following two years of planning.

Floods of social media messages would follow on from Reds supporters across the world in the weeks and months after, as word of his incredible challenge continued to spread.

"I think it's Liverpool in general really. They're very proud of their own," Jack continued. "The messages of support from the Reds community has been really cool.

"We spent time with the Liverpool supporters' club in Hyderabad the day before Diwali, which was amazing. That was a special evening. They brought us some gifts and other things that we never expected. The messages were just so special from everyone and meant a lot."

After suffering a seizure while riding a bike to work in Australia in 2019, the 32-year-old from Cheshire was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumour.

Since then, he has proved an inspiration for those who have followed his journey - with his running challenges raising thousands for charity.

In his attempt to become the first person on record to run the length of India, he started at the northern tip of the country in the mountains of Ladakh, before finishing a near-4,000km effort in the south in Kanyakumari, by the Laccadive Sea.

Supported by a small crew of friends, including former Liverpool physical performance coach Jordan Fairclough, Jack finished his feat in just 74 days - six days earlier than originally planned - having often spent anywhere between seven and nine hours on his feet per day.

"It's not sunk in yet. Me and the lads were in a little bubble for three months and that turned into quite a well-oiled machine," Jack said. "We obviously interacted and engaged with the Indian community on multiple occasions, but we were still in our own little bubble.

"That expanded a bit when my friends, family and partner all arrived for the finish - everyone wanted to celebrate so it's only the last few days since I got back that I've been able to sit and breathe. There were some nice reflections probably in the last three weeks. That helped my mindset prepare a bit more for finishing and starting whatever comes next.

"It hasn't just been a celebration of three months. It's been a journey of five or six years really of change and dedication and commitment and many things that led me to the finish line. Now that I'm entering a new chapter there's a little bit of fear and anxiety because I've just been so focused on this one goal for probably the best part of two years. But with it also comes a lot of excitement - whatever it may be. I'm still trying to piece together a lot of what my reflections are. There have been a lot of emotions this week and a big sense of pride.

"You're expected to feel this huge moment of joy but what I realised is that it's all about the journey rather than the destination. The biggest accomplishment was the experience rather than just crossing the finish line.

"It was a special last day. To have my family there was incredible at the end. I looked at the map of India before with my partner and she just said, 'What have you just done?!' I don't think it has hit me and it will probably take a bit of time to properly process it because of the size and scale of what's happened.

"I've cried with laughter more in three months than I have in the last six years. There was sadness that I might not experience something like that again but towards the end I was probably ready to wake up and not have to run over 50km a day. There was a lot of relief that we just got to the end in one piece."

Throughout the tough moments on his journey Jack would often look to his crew - Fred, Dan, Devin, Jake and Jordan - for guidance.

He would receive video messages from loved ones in his attempts to battle through those moments where doubts lingered, while John Barnes and Federico Chiesa were also among those to send support.

"It wasn't a journey just about me and hopefully I tried to put that across," Jack said. "Obviously, I am at the core of it, but it's not an easy job for the lads to get me through each day safely and in one piece.

"The lads were unbelievable; for example, Jordan has been bred in an environment at Liverpool that's the most professional you can imagine, where his thought process each day is about what he can do to help this athlete perform at their very best.

"He was literally the first person in my van and the last person in my van every day. He was always thinking about what he could do to make my life easier - even down to finding launderettes and folding all my clothes and putting them away for me. It was never in his job description to do any of that. There was no job he wouldn't do for the cause and the same is to be said for all the lads.

"It was pretty special to foster an environment where we were all so supportive of one another to achieve the goal."

Jack's attitude in the face of his diagnosis has proved nothing short of inspiring to those both close and following from afar on social media.

But the journey, he admits, has not been a linear one from the day he was told he would be lucky to live past 40, to the man who stood triumphantly at the southern tip of India.

"There's been loads of really difficult moments," Jack added. "I've skirted with depression on quite a few separate occasions. I think I've got an innate ability to not dwell on things, though.

"You always have a choice in that moment and some people do worry. But you can also say, what can you do to have a positive outcome? I think that's just how I've always been.

"There's been some difficult moments in the past six years when I'd have a bad scan or struggled to find my own identity, meaning and purpose with my diagnosis and trying to live alongside it.

"I guess it's that state of fear but still being able to thrive. I realised running could be a real catalyst and it became a great method for me to have a positive impact. It just became my vehicle and one thing led to another and plans just kept getting a little bit bigger.

"I think anyone who has quite an ambitious goal or dream or whatever it may be - we tend to attach our self-worth to that dream or goal. I think I had done that. I subconsciously only probably thought I would be worthy if I achieved something like this. A key reflection for me has been that whether I achieved the outcome that I desired or not, is that I was always worthy and that I was always enough. It didn't matter whether I finished the run or never took part in it in the first place.

"That was something I started to recognise in the last few weeks. It made me able to look at the person in the mirror and be proud of being able to put myself out there to even give it a go in the first place. Whatever happens after that is out of your control as long as you're showing up for yourself each day."

So, what does the future hold now that he has conquered his India challenge? There's celebrating to be done and a documentary of his run in the pipeline.

"It definitely felt like the end of a chapter," Jack concluded. "I don't really have a strong burning desire to do anything like that for a while. It's hard for anyone to ever really understand the time, effort and commitment to put yourself through something like that.

"It's a testament that I was able to do it and my body literally felt fine on the last day. I put so much time into training to try to get my body ready for it and that requires a lot of sacrifice and it didn't leave space for other things. I'm really excited to leave that space now for things that I want to have a positive impact on myself.

"I'm facing the reality of my diagnosis as well. I have an MRI scan in a few weeks, and I'll have the results after that. The likelihood is I'll probably need treatment and surgery, which would be a big operation and that'll be probably at some point in the New Year.

"Whatever happens in future, I am really at peace with. I have been on this journey for a long time now. I have a lot of celebrating to do over the next couple of weeks and things to look forward to. I'm going to try to stay present and enjoy that."

• If you want to support Jack's documentary, get in touch via info@jackfaint.com. Supporters can also follow him on his Instagram page