| NORTH
POLE ARCTIC MARATHON
SET FOR APRIL 2, 2004
http://www.npmarathon.com
Posted August 20, 2003
 The
North Pole Arctic Marathon 2004 is now provisionally scheduled
for April 2, 2004. Entries open on August 15, 2003 and will
be allotted on a first come first served basis, with a limit
of 30 athletes in the field.
Richard Donovan of Ireland, who pioneered marathon running
at the North Pole, is the organiser and race director for
the event. He won the first ever South Pole Marathon in January
2002 and then ran a solo marathon at the North Pole ten weeks
later.
Athletes of any reasonable ability are invited to compete
and there is no cut-off time. The race will take place on
a circuit of one to two miles, depending on the presence of
leads (open water). Run on ice in the high Arctic Ocean, the
challenges will include varying terrain from small hillocks
of ice to energy sapping soft snow, as well as extreme sub-zero
temperatures and icy winds.
In addition to the male and female individual titles, teams
of three are invited to compete for a team challenge. With
a maximum of four to a team, the title will be decided by
the cumulative time of the top three finishers on each team.
The race will also offer individual athletes the opportunity
to join the North Pole Grand Slam Club, reserved for those
who have completed a marathon on each of the seven continents
in addition to the North Pole Arctic Marathon.
This 26.2-mile marathon event will be run from the drifting
Russian base camp at the North Pole. Running on the moving
ice that overlays 12,000 feet of Arctic Ocean, athletes will
eventually finish at the colourful ceremonial pole that protrudes
from the ice amidst a plethora of international flags. An
award ceremony and photographs at exactly 90N will follow
once all have successfully completed the event.
The entry fee for the North Pole Arctic Marathon is set at
US $8,500, payable in three instalments and in Sterling and
Euro equivalents. The fee covers entry to the marathon, return
flights from Svalbard (Norway) to the North Pole, heated tents
and food while at the Pole, and helicopter flights around
the North Pole region. A video documentary will be made of
the race and a press release will be issued worldwide following
the conclusion of the event.
http://www.npmarathon.com
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