This year’s Race Across The World finale was a real nail-biter, with only 19 minutes standing between mum-and-son winners Caroline and Tom and sisters Elizabeth and Letitia, who came second.
The competition, which spanned 51 days, saw five pairs of contestants crossing 8,700 miles from the Great Wall of China to Kanniyakumari in southern India in a bid to win £20,000.
Early years specialist Elizabeth, 33, from Worthing, and her younger sister Letitia, a 26-year-old special needs teaching assistant from Lancing, West Sussex, tell heat about how the show has brought them closer and more…
What a tense finale!
Letitia: It was! Even I was on the edge of my seat.
How do you feel about coming second?
L: I feel great. We pushed ourselves to the end. We were very determined, so I’m really happy – I’m really proud of us. We tried our very best and gave it our all.
You went from living in separate countries to being together 24/7, plus this was your first time travelling together. How was it?
L: In the beginning, we were still getting to know each other, so we wouldn’t express how we felt and were stand-offish, but being together constantly, we had to have those conversations. It then became easier, because we knew when we had to give each other space. Being with someone 24/7, you will be tired and frustrated, but because we were so determined and focused, we persevered and we got through it.
Are you best of friends now?
L: We’re closer, with much more of a sisterly bond. We’ve gotten to a point where we are comfortable with the fact that we bicker a lot, which is quite nice. We want to plan a lot of things together and share more experiences.
E: We’re planning to travel and are thinking about what our next steps will be. Letitia is thinking about maybe even moving abroad. I’ll like to visit her and she would have a base here with me.
Is opening a retreat still on the cards?
E: For sure. I’ve always wanted to open a retreat. It’s just thinking about where. We’ve got some land in Kenya, so we’ve had a few discussions to see about how that could look. In the meantime, I’d like to do some workshops here and see what we could probably do together as well. The future is looking bright.
What did you struggle with the most?
E: The most challenging thing was opening up emotionally, because we’re travelling around with producers who ask questions like, ‘How are you bonding?’ And, ‘How’s your relationship changing?’ We were forced to talk about things we hadn’t spoken about for a long time, so emotionally, those prompts were a lot. It was almost like therapy, because we were going deep with the bonding and our relationship. It’s hard talking about our feelings and things like that. But I think we wanted to take the next step forward for us and our family.
Was it hard keeping things a secret from everyone?
L: Yes! It was filmed last year, which is a long time to keep anything secret.
So no one knew you were taking part, despite you going away for two months?
L: Our close family knew we were going on the show, but they didn’t know where it would be.
E: With everybody else, we were like, ‘We’re going travelling and we’re going to be off-grid, so we’re not going to have a phone.’
Who are you still friends with from the show?
E: We’re still in contact with everybody. We have a group chat and we all talk together. We’re trying to meet up as much as we can and arrange our own reunions as well.
Now that you’ve had a taste of reality shows, would you like to do more TV?
L: Ooooohhh…
E: If I were going to do something like this again, it would have to be more of a challenge or another kind of adventure experience.
L: Me too!
How would you sum up the experience in one word?
E: Exhilarating.
L: Eye opening!