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New-Look Adventure Challenge On Starters Orders With Record Breaking Line-Up |
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50 Teams From 20 Countries For Top-Tier EventThree months prior to its official start, the 2010 Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge has attracted its highest-ever competitor attendance with a record 50 teams from 20 countries signed up. Now in its fourth year, the Challenge - which runs 10-15th December 2010 across the emirate – is widely considered one of the world’s top three adventure races and the most internationally diverse in terms of athlete representation. Having reached capacity, Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), which owns the race, has closed entry to the Challenge with additional applications being wait-listed. “The success of the Challenge has exceeded even our own extremely high ambitions and is a dynamic champion of Abu Dhabi’s performance athletics credentials and a credible demonstration of our ability to host world-class events,” said Faisal Al Sheikh, Events Manager, ADTA. “To be so ahead of the curve for the 2010 edition speaks volumes about how this event has grown in popularity within the global adventure racing community. It also means that we are on the right track and the potential for the Challenge is enormous.” Signalling the sport’s increasing domestic popularity, nine UAE-based teams have signed on for the event – the largest ever number to be enrolled from the local market - and a third up on last year. Traditional adventure racing stalwarts France have eight teams in the fray. Australia, Great Britain, New Zealand, Sweden, the United States and South Africa have also increased their entries with three teams each, with Russia, China and Denmark having two apiece. Switzerland, Canada, Germany, Italy, Norway, Poland, Singapore, Turkey, and Spain round off the list of participating nations with one team each. Thirty-two teams will debut at this year’s Challenge, with Canada, Norway and New Caledonia, a Southwest Pacific island, being represented for the first time. “We set out to make this the world’s most international adventure race, I believe we have fully achieved this. Year after year, we see new teams coming and old ones returning, all eager to test their mettle against Abu Dhabi’s diverse and stunning natural landscapes. What is really positive is how the sport continues to grow domestically and we hope to see improved sign-up from more local and regional teams as the event moves forward,” added Al Sheikh. In addition to an enhanced line-up, this year’s Challenge boasts a new-look course, with the six-day race beginning and ending in the UAE capital for the first time. Following the traditional city-wide triathlon prologue, teams will navigate in a clockwise direction from east to west, beginning in the Oasis City of Al Ain for a confrontation with the rugged outcrops of the emirate’s highest peak, Jebel Hafeet - a complete direction reversal of previous years. From the dramatic heights, the teams will traverse the vast expanse of the Rub’ al Khali - the world’s largest expanse of unbroken sand, larger than Holland, France and Belgium combined – for two-days of multi-checkpoint, lung bursting desert trekking. Tactics also come into play during this leg, as teams have to choose whether to attempt all checkpoints, or miss key ones and take the time penalty in lieu of saving energy in the precipitous 200 metre high dunes. The endurance race finally ends with a two-day, 128kms sea kayaking section back to the Abu Dhabi city finish line. With so many terrains to tackle, teams have to utilise a wide-range of skills including sea kayaking, adventure running, desert mountain biking, swimming, adventure trekking, street cycling, desert hiking, cross orienteering, and rope and mountaineering activities. Three-time Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge winner, Richard Ussher of New Zealand, who is returning this year with wife Elina and Nathan Fa’ave under the Thule Adventure Team banner, says increased participation by the world’s top athletes is going to make this a much closely contested event, which will only serve to stimulate increased interest down the line. “I’m sure this year’s event will be the closest yet and it will take a special effort to try and retain our crown for a fourth year in a row,” said Ussher, who led the Qasr Al Sarab team to victory last year. “With the Abu Dhabi Challenge just over two months away, we’re starting to ramp up training. We’re really looking forward to returning to Abu Dhabi for some hard racing and to see some more of the amazing sights around the emirate.” The Adventure Challenge was designed by ADTA to globally promote the emirate’s burgeoning credentials as a world-class adventure leisure destination and to showcase Abu Dhabi’s vast natural beauty. ADTA works closely with a number of governmental and commercial bodies to successfully stage the Challenge, including General Head Quarters of the Armed Forces (GHQ), Critical National Infrastructure Authority (CNIA), Abu Dhabi Police, Al Ain Traffic Police, Abu Dhabi Customs, Ministry of Health, Abu Dhabi Beaches, Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Mirfa municipalities, and Emirates Palace. To find out more about Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge 2010, please log on to: www.abudhabi-adventure.com. |
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