Ghanaian Guinness World Record holder Abdul Hakim Awal, who holds the title for the longest time to hug a tree has changed the dynamics of the game forever.

After Awal’s 24-hour, 21-minute feat, the category has been moved to marathon level. According to Guinness World Records, the title has been changed from Longest Time to Hug a Tree to Longest Marathon Hugging a Tree.

“Now that the record stands at 24 hours – the point at which record attempts are considered ‘marathons’ – the title has been modified to longest marathon hugging a tree. This means that future challengers will be permitted breaks (a total of two hours per day) in order to combat the harmful effects of sleep deprivation,” the world record authority announced in a statement.

Awal did not take breaks for his challenge, as the rules at that period did not permit breaks. For 1,461 minutes, he kept his arms wrapped around the tree, standing. However, his determination to hit his target has not only increased the time to beat but has brought future attempts a two-hour break every 24 hours.

The new holder of the Guinness World Record for the longest time to hug a tree, becomes the last holder of the title, as subsequent attempts will be listed as a marathon. But he believes he deserves to grab another award under the new title one day.

“Yes, of course! Since I modified the name to Longest Marathon, then I have to set a marathon record for that!”

But before that, Awal wants to change the narrative. Awal now looks forward to replicating the lush green southern vegetation in northern Ghana. Despite Ghana’s attention on elections, he believes the recognition is timely for him to contribute to the conversation about the recent dry spell in the country threatening food security. As efforts are being put together to mitigate the situation, Awal is looking into introducing drought-resistant plant species that could be the next car Cash crop like cocoa, in his planting exercise.