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Marathon relay series returns for its third year with record numbers of teams set to compete for the largest prize pool in world athletics
25 October 2006, London – Standard Chartered has announced the launch of the third series of The Greatest Race on Earth (GROE) with the Kenyans in top form to retain the Nations Challenge title. The unique and truly international marathon relay series, dubbed the ‘World Cup of Marathons’, will this year see a record number of professional and national teams compete for a share of the US$1.5 million prize pool, still the largest in the world of athletics.
Some of the world’s quickest marathon athletes will compete. In teams of four, running in one marathon each they will work together to achieve the fastest cumulative time to win. No team is more determined than current Nations Challenge holders Kenya. Starting for the team in Nairobi is the talented Sammy Karanja. Coached by John Mwithiga (nicknamed ‘Warm-up’) the Kenyans have high hopes to retain their title. 27 year-old Karanja enthused;
“We’ve been training really hard for the past 12 weeks and I believe our team will work very well together. It’s my first time in the Nairobi marathon and I feel in excellent condition, I really want to win this leg of the race.”
Karanja trains in the Loi cho bour region, in the shadow of the Ngong Hills, literally following in footsteps of World record holder Paul Tergat.
His coach ‘Warm-up’ explained;
“The location is ideal, it’s flat, with no car pollution and a soft surface, excellent for speed and endurance. Sammy has great potential and with an experienced support team around him he should be representing Kenya at the 2008 Olympics. The Greatest Race is a great challenge and valuable experience for young talent to prepare for this goal”.
All teams participating in Standard Chartered’s GROE will face many challenges along the way – as well as the high altitude of Nairobi on 29 October will be the humidity and heat in Singapore and Mumbai, on 3 December 2006 and 21 January 2007 respectively, and the uphill terrain in Hong Kong, the decisive final leg on 4 March 2007. Partnership, teamwork, trust and courage, all of which are Standard Chartered core values, will be key factors in determining the winners.
In total 82 teams have entered to compete this year. This includes 45 professional athlete teams who will set their sights on the US$400,000 prize for winning the Main Team Challenge, and 30 national teams sent by athletics associations around the world competing for the Nations Challenge. Both of these are increases on the number of teams entered in the 2004/05 and 2005/06 series. And the increased bonus pool on offer this series to all-women teams has seen the number of Women’s Challenge teams rise to 15, also a GROE record.
The Main Team Challenge looks set to be a close encounter, with a number of world class athletes named in the line-up for the series. Amongst the high-profile names recognisable to marathon fans around the world will be Usisivu Boniface, Simon Bor and Joseph Ngolepus, all sub-2:08 athletes, and for the women, Tegla Loroupe, Elana Meyer and Liu Min.
Defending champions Kenya will be one of 30 teams competing in the Nations Challenge, with Mexico, Argentina, Tanzania and Sri Lanka all making their GROE debuts. As well as the first prize for the overall Nations Challenge, there is prize money on offer for the first three placed teams in each of seven regions.
A new and unique incentive has been introduced this year, as Nations Challenge teams will also be vying to bring home the GROE Gold Baton – a 9 carat, 300 gram, solid gold relay baton that has been specially commissioned for the Race. The baton will be presented to the winning team after the final leg of the GROE in Hong Kong on 4 March 2007.
Mike DeNoma, Group Executive Director of Standard Chartered, led by example in 2005/06 by completing all four GROE marathons. He said:
“Standard Chartered is proud to introduce the GROE Gold Baton for the 2006/07 Nations Challenge. The Gold Baton is a symbol of the teamwork required to win the race and a reflection of the high standards that GROE runners set in each marathon.”
“GROE has now become a World Cup of Marathons with over 30 competing nations. The competition attracts high quality international athletes and, through teamwork, gives the opportunity for young talent to develop crucial race experience.”
Standard Chartered has also introduced awards to recognise special achievements. Amongst these is a US$15,000 award for the team who improves most on their 2005/06 cumulative time, and a US$20,000 pool to recognise those teams that overcome obstacles to complete the series.
Website: www.thegreatestrace.com.
The Standard Chartered Greatest Race on Earth
The Greatest Race on Earth (GROE) was created in 2004 – the first-ever virtual relay race across four marathons. The Main Team Challenge category is open to men and women over 18 years of age, of any nationality, with no restriction on the level of competence. Each team member will run in one marathon. Teams must nominate who will run in each full marathon before the start of the series, and the winning team will be the one whose athletes record the lowest aggregate time across the four marathons.
In 2005/06 the quality of the runners was world-class, with 24 male and 30 female GROE runners placing in the top 10 of each of the four marathons.
Building on the success of the first two series, Standard Chartered presents GROE for the third time. There are over 80 teams and 300 participants taking part. The race covers marathons in Nairobi, Singapore, Mumbai and Hong Kong, representing some of the most challenging environments in the world:
• The highest race at over 1,600 metres in Nairobi – 29 October 2006
• The island race around Singapore – 3 December 2006
• The historic race through Mumbai – 21 January 2007
• The harbour race across Hong Kong – 4 March 2007
The marathons characterise the values and attitude that Standard Chartered believes in, and lives by every day. Partnership, teamwork, trust, courage, willpower, the determination to “go the distance” and a “can-do” attitude, all of which are Standard Chartered core values, will be key factors in determining the winners.
3 overall categories
Main Team Challenge Prize pool of US$845,000; fastest combined time of four runners across all four marathons (one runner per team per race); top prize of US$400,000; prizes to 5th place. Includes a bonus prize pool of US$200,000 for top five women teams.
The Nations Challenge Prize pool of US$400,000 – fastest National Athletics Association team time of four runners across all four marathons (one runner per team per race); top overall prize of US$50,000. Teams are also divided into 7 regions – Africa, South Asia, South East Asia, North East Asia, Europe & Oceania, Middle East and Americas, with prizes for teams who finish in top three in each region.
Performance Awards Bonus pool of US$55,000 has been set aside for special achievement awards. These are awarded to national teams that have made a significant improvement on their previous GROE times, and teams that have demonstrated commitment, endeavour and determination in competing in and completing the Greatest Race on Earth
Standard Chartered – leading the way in Asia, Africa and the Middle East
Standard Chartered PLC is listed on both the London Stock Exchange and the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong and is consistently ranked in the top 25 among FTSE-100 companies by market capitalisation.
Standard Chartered has a history of over 150 years in banking and is in many of the world’s fastest-growing markets with an extensive global network of over 1,200 branches (including subsidiaries, associates and joint ventures) in over 50 countries in the Asia Pacific Region, South Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the United Kingdom and the Americas.
As one of the world’s most international banks, Standard Chartered employs almost 50,000 people, representing over 90 nationalities, worldwide. This diversity lies at the heart of the Bank’s values and supports the Bank’s growth as the world increasingly becomes one market.
With strong organic growth supported by strategic alliances and acquisitions and driven by its strengths in the balance and diversity of its business, products, geography and people, Standard Chartered is well positioned in the emerging trade corridors of Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Standard Chartered uniquely derives over 90 per cent of profits from Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Serving both Consumer and Wholesale Banking customers worldwide, the Bank combines deep local knowledge with global capability to offer a wide range of innovative products and services as well as award-winning solutions.
Trusted across its network for its standard of governance and corporate responsibility, Standard Chartered takes a long term view of the consequences of its actions to ensure that the Bank builds a sustainable business through social inclusion, environmental protection and good governance.
Standard Chartered is also committed to all its stakeholders by living its values in its approach towards managing its people, exceeding expectations of its customers, making a difference in communities and working with regulators.
For more information on Standard Chartered, please log on to www.standardchartered.com.
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