A poetic marathon lasting 456 hours ended in Ostroh!

The National University of Ostroh Academy held the closing ceremony for continuous reading of Taras Shevchenko’s poetry. The marathon was dedicated to the 200th birth anniversary of the great poet and heroes of the Heavenly Sotnia. The event claims the world record in the Longest Relay Reading Marathon category. The Ostroh Academy is to receive the confirmation of its achievement within three months. Over 456 hours recorded on the chronometer, about 3,000 participants recited the entire Kobzar 45 times, making for 11,250 poems in total! The event was monitored by 228 witnesses, some of them were famous public and cultural figures coming from different parts of Ukraine. At the request of the Guinness Book of Records, the room was shown non-stop in an online video broadcast on the official website of the Ostroh Academy, and photographers worked there, too. As a result of the poetic marathon, the academy entered the Book of Records of Ukraine for the third time. The diploma confirming another achievement in the Mass Event category was presented by Rivne regional representative of the National Book of Records of Ukraine Project Oleksandr Shusteruk.

“We have done it, even though the live broadcast of the marathon reading of Shevchenko’s poetry suffered 18 hacker attacks! It is our common achievement that has once again proved that we can be proud of our creative and friendly students. It is the first international recognition of this kind for our Bard. In the context of the ongoing events, his works are particularly relevant,” the academy’s rector Ihor Pasichnyk said during the closing ceremony of the poetic marathon. Collective recital by students and teachers of the Ostroh Academy of Shevchenko’s poem The Epistle was the final moment of the event.