The Official Kilimanjaro Marathon 2010

March 5, 2010 - PRLog -- Situated south of the equator - in Tanzania - at 5 895 metres, this is Africa's highest mountain and the highest "free standing" mountain in the world. Huge permanent glaciers flow down from the summit, and the sheer presence of this huge mountain dominates the entire area. An icon in Africa, "Kili” as she is affectionately known, is one of the sights every person should see at least once in his or her life.

On 28 February 2010, a standard 42.2 km marathon and a 21.1 km half marathon will be run from the town of Moshi, Tanzania. This race has been set up to promote the sport in Tanzania, and has the official backing of the Tanzania Tourist Board, the Tanzania Amateur Athletics Association, the IAAF, and is registered with AIMS (click here to access the AIMS calendar of marathon events).

The marathon route leaves Moshi stadium and heads down towards the town, and then along the main road to Dar-Es-Salaam for approximately 8-9km. This section of the route is relatively flat, and there are plenty of well-wishers along the road. We turn around and head back to the town of Moshi, tracking down into the actual town itself before turning toward the mountain and heading up a long, steady ascent towards Mweka. The uphill climb is gradual, but with Kilimanjaro towering above and all the local villagers out to cheer you on, the time passes quickly. The turnaround point marks approximately 32km and the last section is a fast downhill run back toward the stadium. Regular water tables as well as 'sponging points' and the odd 'shower' keep the runners refreshed and cool along the entire route.

The route passes through many small holder farms, villages, parts of town, banana and coffee plantations and patches of forest, providing great excitement to the residents who give ample vocal support.

For those running the half marathon, the route also starts at the Moshi stadium and after a short section on the flat, it follows the gradual uphill route to Mweka as per the full marathon - before turning around at approx 10km to return to the stadium again. The atmosphere in the stadium is electric with local bands playing, entertainment, crowds of local enthusiasts to cheer the runners, and lots of food and drink for sale.

The logistics of the operation are run by the Kilimanjaro Marathon Club and the members of both the Tanzania Amateur Athletics Association (TAAA) and the local Kilimanjaro Amateur Athletics Association (KAAA).

Travel arrangements and packages to access the race are being provided by Wild Frontiers, the official tour operator, a South African, Tanzanian and Ugandan based tour operator, who are experienced in Tanzania travel and logistics and who are members of the South African Tour Operators Association and ASATA, and who is the largest tour operator into Tanzania from South Africa.

The race is completely backed up, with twelve water points being provided and manned by local organisations. Crowd control and traffic control are provided for, as is medical assistance and communications. Official timekeeping is arranged, as is an official prize giving and function attended by local dignitaries.

The Runners
Interest in this race is extremely high, with both the Tanzanians and Kenyans being keen to enter teams and individuals. The Athletics Associations of Ethiopia and Uganda are being approached to enter this race, as well as other countries in the region. The competition to win this race is calling some of Africas best marathon runners to Tanzania.

This does NOT preclude the social runners, and apart from the excitement of participating in a race in such an amazing area, with Africa's highest mountain as a backdrop, this race is run in one of the best seasons of the year for additional travel to Tanzania's famous game parks (the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater - timed to coincide with the annual migration of over a million wildebeest into the Serengeti - the largest migration of these animals on the planet!), and to the Spice Island of Zanzibar, famed for it's pristine beaches and scuba diving, or other areas .

Packages to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro prior to the race, or after the race, will be available, and to visit the parks etc as above, through Wild Frontiers.

Wild Frontiers          
E-mail: linda@wildfrontiers.com / reservations@wildfrontiers.com
Web: www.wildfrontiers.com       
Tel: +27 11 702 2035 Fax: +27 11 468 1655
www.kilimanjaromarathon.com / www.vicfallsmarathon.com
PO Box 844, Halfway House, 1685, South Africa