North Pole Marathon

North Pole Marathon
DateMid-April
LocationNorth Pole
Event typeRoad
DistanceMarathon
Established2003
Course recordsMen's: 3:36:10 (2007)
Republic of Ireland Thomas Maguire
Women's: 4:52:45 (2014)
Germany Anne-Marie Flammersfeld
Official sitewww.npmarathon.com

The North Pole Marathon is an extreme marathon staged at or near the Geographic North Pole on floating Arctic Sea ice. The classic 42.195 km (26.219 mi) marathon race is run on a loop about 10 times over hard snow or the frozen ice of the Arctic Ocean.[1] There are individual competitions with male and female divisions, and a team competition for teams of three or more. There is also an option to run a half marathon.

The North Pole Marathon has been recognized by Guinness World Records as the "Northernmost Marathon on Earth".[2]

Description and history

Since the geographic North Pole is located in the middle of the Arctic Ocean, and the ice that covers it is constantly shifting, the race can only be said to be run near it; even if the race starts at the exact pole, the ice could have drifted away within minutes.[3]

The first unofficial North Pole Marathon was a 'solo' run by Richard Donovan on April 5, 2002, in a time of 3:48:12. Richard won the first South Pole Marathon ten weeks previously and became the first marathoner at both poles by completing the North Pole Marathon.

For the first 15 official races, the race was run in April, when the sun shines 24 hours a day. The temperature was extreme cold, −25 °C (−13 °F) during the 2004 race.[3] Runners wore snowshoes or trail shoes with studs on their feet, two pairs of gloves and mittens on their hands, and multiple layers of windproof and thermal gear on their legs and bodies to prevent frostbite.[4] On their heads they wore hats, face masks, and goggles; if these were removed, frost and icicles would form on the runner's face.[3][4]

The first official exploratory competitive race was held on April 17, 2003, at Camp Barneo, a seasonal floating way station, 60 miles from the North Pole, and was operated jointly by several entities with 10 competitors. The winner was Martin Tighe of Great Britain with a time of 5:02:10, who had trained for the run in an ice-cream freezer. Mary Ritz of the United States was the sole women's racer.[5][6]

In 2005, the North Pole Marathon was cancelled due to a dispute between French and Russian logistics operators. Races resumed from 2006 through 2018. The 2019 marathon was cancelled due to a political dispute between Ukraine, which owned the plane to transport the runners, and Russia, which owned Camp Barneo.[7] The 2020 marathon was cancelled by the Norwegian government, which owned Longyearbyen, from which the runners fly to Barneo, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[8] Barneo was closed again in 2021 due to the pandemic, and inaccessible in 2022 when Europe banned Russian planes due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[9]

Starting from 2023, race organizers tried a different approach. They organized the race during the summer, July or August, when the weather is warmer (−2 °C (28 °F) in August 2023), which allowed runners to travel to the Pole on a French icebreaker, Le Commandant Charcot, from Longyearbyen, which takes about a week. Runners needed to wear fewer thermal layers, but did need to wear life vests for safety while running over the thinner ice.[10][11][12] In 2026, organizers said the race course ice disappeared hours after the race ended.[13]

Results

Past winners

Key:   Course record

Edition Year Men's winner Time (h:m:s) Women's winner Time (h:m:s)
1st 2003[6]  Martin Tighe (GBR) 5:02:10  Mary Ritz (USA)
2nd 2004[14]  Sean Burch (USA) 3:43:17  Stevie Matthews (GBR) 7:55:32
— 2005[15] Cancelled
3rd 2006[16]  Michael Collins (IRE) 4:28:35  Alison Hamlett (GBR) 5:52:56
4th 2007[17]  Thomas Maguire (IRE) 3:36:10  Susan Holliday (GBR) 6:17:40
5th 2008[18]  Ahn Byeung-sik (KOR) 4:02:37  Cathrine Due (DEN) 5:37:14
6th 2009[19]  Evgeniy Gorkov (RUS) 4:27:05  Pushpa Chandra (CAN) 7:27:31
7th 2010[20]  Joep Rozendal (NED) 5:00:58  Emer Dooley (IRE) 5:56:54
8th 2011[21]  István Tóth (HUN) 4:54:03  Richelle Turner (AUS) 6:03:06
9th 2012[22]  Andrew Murray (GBR) 4:17:08  Demelza Farr (AUS) 6:06:36
10th 2013[23]  Gary Thornton (IRE) 3:49:29  Fiona Oakes (GBR) 4:53:10
11th 2014[24]  Michael Wardian (USA) 4:07:40  Anne-Marie Flammersfeld (GER) 4:52:45
12th 2015[25]  Petr Vabroušek (CZE) 4:22:24  Heather Hawkins (AUS) 6:57:39
13th 2016[26]  Dorn Wenninger (USA) 5:17:33  Gulzhamal DeFelice (USA) 5:50:12
14th 2017[27]  Piotr Suchenia (POL) 4:06:34  Frédérique Laurent (FRA) 6:21:03
15th 2018[28]  Argyrios Papathanasopoulos (GRE) 4:34:36  Guoping Xie (CHN) 6:43:20
— 2019-2022[7][8][9] Cancelled
16th 2023[10][11]  Patrick Charlebois (CAN) 3:48:41  Melissa Kullander (USA) 5:24:39
17th 2024[29][30]  William Hafferty (USA) 3:14:49  Katherine Kowalchek (USA) 5:36:00
18th 2025[31][32]  Oleg Polyntsev (GBR) 3:43:25  Becca Pizzi (USA) 4:46:26
19th 2026[12][33]  Shengxian Wang (CHN) 3:52:22  Rikke Dam (DEN) 6:54:02

Notable participants and achievements

Mark Pollock of Ireland became the first blind athlete to complete a marathon at the North Pole during the 2004 event. Guided by John O'Regan, he finished in 5:51:48.[14] The 2006 race was won by Irish novelist Michael Collins.[34] In 2007, William Tan, a wheelchair competitor, completed a marathon distance in 21 hours and 10 minutes.[35] In 2010, Jamie Cuthbertson, a blind runner from the United Kingdom completed the race in 7:37:02.[36][20] In 2016, 78 year old Michel Ribet (FRA/USA) became the oldest runner to complete the marathon in 8:15:10, at 78 years old.[37] In 2018, escorted blind runner Gary Leung Siu-wai finished, becoming the first blind runner to complete both the North Pole and Antarctica Marathons.[38] In 2024, Susan Ragon (USA) became the oldest woman to complete the North Pole Marathon when she was 73 years old; she fell and broke her wrist before completing in 8:58:33.[39] In 2026, Rikke Dam (DEN) who won the women's race in 6:54:02, ran with her husband and 14 year old son Felix Dam.[33][40]

The tournament men's record of 3:36:10 was set by Thomas Maguire (IRL) in 2007,[41] then broken by Billy Hafferty's (USA) 3:14:49 in 2024.[29] The tournament women's record of 4:46:26 was set by Becca Pizzi (USA) in 2025.[32]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "North Pole Marathon: Adventure Racing at the Top of the World". Men's Fitness. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  2. ↑ "For the Record". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 Seaton, Steven (15 August 2006). "The North Pole Marathon". Runner's World. Retrieved 14 August 2026.
  4. 1 2 "BG native on top of the world for marathon". Bowling Green Daily News. 6 April 2009. Retrieved 14 August 2026.
  5. ↑ Revkin, Andrew C. (28 April 2003). "At the Bustling North Pole, Here Today, Gone Tomorrow". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2025-01-26. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Lists of competitors and race results: 2003". npmarathon.com. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  7. 1 2 Weidenbruch, Lena (April 30, 2019). "North Pole Marathon Frozen by Political Conflict". Fordham Observer. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
  8. 1 2 Weidenbruch, Lena (April 7, 2020). "Another Year of Bad News for the North Pole Marathon". Fordham Observer. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
  9. 1 2 Dreier, Frederick (26 April 2024). "Eric Larsen Missed Out on the North Pole Again. He Isn't Giving Up". Outside. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
  10. 1 2 Routen, Ash (30 July 2025). "Somehow, the North Pole Marathon Keeps Running". ExplorersWeb. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  11. 1 2 "International runners make history: North Pole Marathon in summer". North Pole Marathon. August 16, 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  12. 1 2 Bishop, Holly (21 July 2026). "North Pole marathon runners race over drifting sea ice in 'coolest race ever'". The Independent. Yahoo News Australia. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  13. ↑ Aikman, Ian (19 July 2026). "Marathon runners compete on drifting sea ice at North Pole". BBC News. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  14. 1 2 "Burch wins North Pole Marathon". World Athletics. 13 Apr 2004. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  15. ↑ Stong, Charlie (16 April 2005). "Dispute destroys 2005 Arctic race". London Now. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  16. ↑ "On top of the world" (PDF). Distance Running. Association of International Marathons and Distance Races. 8 April 2006. pp. 15–17. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  17. ↑ "Irishman Wins Coolest Race On Earth". Athletics Ireland. 11 April 2007. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  18. ↑ "April 2008 AIMS Results". Association of International Marathons and Distance Races. 1 April 2008. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  19. ↑ Pettersen, Trude (14 April 2009). "Russian wins North Pole Marathon". The Barents Observer. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  20. 1 2 "April 2010 AIMS Results". Association of International Marathons and Distance Races. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  21. ↑ "Midnight Run at 2011 North Pole Marathon". npmarathon.com. April 12, 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  22. ↑ "Edinburgh GP Andrew Murray wins North Pole marathon". BBC News. 10 April 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  23. ↑ "Galway teacher wins North Pole marathon". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 2026-01-20.
  24. ↑ "Runners compete in North Pole Marathon". ITV. 11 April 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  25. ↑ "VIDEO: The North Pole Marathon". KHQ-TV. 13 April 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  26. ↑ "Beware of polar bears: 52 compete in world's coolest race (VIDEO)". Malay Mail. Reuters. 19 April 2016. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  27. ↑ Gumuchian, Marie-Louise; Sarkar, Pritha (11 April 2017). "Runners brave cold and snow for North Pole marathon". SBS News. Reuters. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  28. ↑ Alexander, Lesley (17 April 2018). "The World's Coolest Marathon". Euronews. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
  29. 1 2 Granada, Lauren (9 August 2024). "Vermonter smashes Guinness World Record for fastest North Pole Marathon". WPTZ. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  30. ↑ "New records set at the 2024 Summer North Pole Marathon". North Pole Marathon. August 1, 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  31. ↑ Magazine, του Runner (14 July 2025). "Έγινε ο North Pole Marathon". Runner Magazine (in Greek). Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  32. 1 2 Thompson, Katie (15 July 2025). "Mass. native sets world record at North Pole Marathon". WCVB. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  33. 1 2 "China's Shengxian Wang and Denmark's Rikke Dam Win the 19th North Pole Marathon". North Pole Marathon. July 17, 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  34. ↑ Walsh, Caroline (Apr 15, 2006). "Novel win over the North Pole ice". The Irish Times. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  35. ↑ Atli, Mark (4 May 2021). "William Tan". Fulbright Program. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  36. ↑ Kingsley, Patrick (7 April 2010). "North pole marathon due to begin: racers to run 26 miles on ice at -30C". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  37. ↑ Stone, Ken (1 May 2016). "Thrills and Chills: How North Pole Marathon Challenged San Diego Pair". Times of San Diego. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  38. ↑ Toropov, Pavel (15 May 2018). "Guiding blind runner in North Pole Marathon took his breath away". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 2018-05-31. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  39. ↑ Gross, Katherine (11 July 2025). "73-year-old US woman becomes oldest to complete marathons on North Pole and Antarctica". Guinness Book of World Records. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  40. ↑ "Dansk kvinde vinder ismaraton ved Nordpolen". DK Nyt (in Danish). 19 July 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  41. ↑ "Fastest North Pole Marathon (male)". Guinness Book of World Records. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.