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Kangiqsujuaq, Quebec, August 8, 2006 – Another first in marathons has been marked with the completion of the first-ever Arctic marathon cruise which took place August 2 just outside Kangiqsujuaq, Quebec, an Inuit community of 479 on the shores of Hudson Strait.
Inuit-owned Cruise North Expeditions joined with the Toronto Marathon and Canadian Royalties Inc. (CZZ-TSX) to organize a marathon during an expedition cruise in the Eastern Canadian Arctic. There were 32 participants representing a mix of Cruise North passengers, local Inuit, expedition staff and Russian crew.
Running legend Bill Rodgers, four-time winner of the Boston and New York Marathons, awarded first prize - a large soapstone Inuit carving of a crouching falcon - to Fiona Savage, 46, of Toronto who finished the race in a time of four hours and one minute. Elijah Ningiurvik of Kangiqsujuaq took second place, an amazing feat considering his longest run to date had been four miles in the snow. Running journalist and personality Bart Yasso completed the course as part of a two-person team, running with one of the Inuit guides.
Runners were brought ashore in Zodiac boats as the ship lay at anchor amid stunning scenery in Douglas Fiord in the Canadian Arctic. Ship's Captain Andrey Rudenko blew an air horn to start the race as Inuit villagers pulled fresh Arctic char from a nearby stream in preparation for the feast to follow. Along the 26.2 mile course, the landscape alternated from rich green tundra with grazing caribou, to endless boulder fields that drew immediate comparisons to lunar landscapes.
The Inuit community of Kangiqsujuaq supplied All Terrain Vehicles so that water, food and safety equipment could be brought to the top of the hill where the Canadian Royalties Inc. truck waited to take volunteers and cheering spectators along the route.
Ultra long-distance runner Laura Yasso was brought to tears by the enthusiasm of the small cheering crowd saying that “I have run races all over the world, but never have I been so touched by the camaraderie and the warmth of the welcome we received from the Inuit.”
“The race course was both beautiful and subtly challenging,” said Dugald Wells, marathon relay participant and President of Cruise North Expeditions. “The rolling landscape and perfect visibility in the ultra-clean Arctic air was deceiving, as hills proved longer and higher than they appeared against the serene backdrop.”
Prior to the marathon, the Cruise North passengers spent three days at sea where they saw an astonishing array of wildlife including 40 breaching ghostly-white beluga whales and hundreds of giant walrus basking in the sun on a rocky outcrop in northern Hudson Bay, surrounded by thousands of thick-billed murres.
“The runners, myself included, were in a uniquely inspired state” noted Jay Glassman, Director of the Toronto Marathon. “It was a surreal experience.”
To learn more about Cruise North Expeditions, please call your travel agent or Cruise North Expeditions at The Travel Network, a Virtuoso travel agency in Toronto, Canada at 1-866-263-3220 or 416-789-3752 or visit http://www.CruiseNorthExpeditions.com
The second annual Arctic Marathon Cruise will take place July 26 – August 4, 2007.
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