'We applied for Race Across the World as a joke'

'We applied for Race Across the World as a joke' 4 hours agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleLauren HirstNorth WestBBCJo Diop and Kush Burman are the youngest duo in this series of Race Across the WorldWarning: This article contains spoiler alerts of series six of Race Across the World. One evening, Kush Burman was scrolling through Instagram when he saw an advert for the popular TV series Race Across the World.He sent the link to his best mate Jo Diop to see if he fancied the challenge.The pair had just finished their A-Levels and were hoping to travel the world before deciding what to do next. "I'd never watched the show personally, but my mum and my brothers did," said 19-year-old Kush from Liverpool. "It was a bit of a joke, a bit of boredom. I was like 'let's apply for this'."I sent it to Joe. He was the most obvious person to apply with and one thing led to another and then here we are."Ten contestants are taking part in the current series This series sees five teams embark on the journey of a lifetime, racing more than 12,000km (7,450 miles) across Europe and Asia.The teams will race from Palermo on the island of Sicily all the way to the remote village of Hatgal on the shores of lake Hövsgöl, in northern Mongolia in a bid to claim the £20,000 prize.The childhood best friends - who are the youngest contestants on this series - had grown up together so Jo was sold on the idea straightaway."It didn't cost anything [to apply] and it was just a little joke in a way, and then it actually got real," said the 19-year-old. 'We entered Race Across the World to honour dying wish'Life after winning Race Across the World'The meaner we are, the better we get along' say Race Across the World siblingsHe added that he was "genuinely shocked" when he was told they had made the cut, receiving the call when he was at home with his family.It was impossible to hide his excitement...