”Antartic Ice Marathon”The start was given on December 17 at 17.40 Chilean time. In the conditions of the polar day, the four-lap race for the first Latvian runner in Antarctica lasted until late in the evening, when Saturday morning was approaching in Latvia. During the sunny marathon, the temperature was -15 degrees and the surface of the track was relatively soft and the organizers on social networks likened it to running on the sand.
The 62-nation race after the first 10.55-kilometer lap was led by Polish runner Gregory Bogunia, followed by France and the United States, Julien Casorla and Jacob Butler. Evija Reine took the lead in the women’s competition, followed by runners-up Inese Janiaka and Britain and the United States.
After two laps in half an hour and 45 minutes, the first leader was Gregory Bogunia, who had a six-minute lead over the Frenchman Julien Casorl.
In the half-distance, Evija Reine from Liepaja climbed to the third place in the overall ranking of both sexes, leaving behind the US representative Derkas Kallinans, the Lithuanian Aivars Dadurs and Jēkabs Batlers, who dropped out of the third position.
In the second half of the race, the leader’s lead was reduced to less than a minute and the trio of leaders was ranked in the following order: Gregory Bogunia (3:53:02) from Poland, Julien Casorl (3:54:30) from France and Derk Callinan (4:01:04), but Lithuanian Aivars Dadura (4:08:10) resigned to fourth place among men and fifth place in the overall standings. Estonian representative Mihkel Oja (5:13:02) finished 12th in the men’s competition.
Evija Reine took care of a new track record (4:06:11), beating the performance of the British representative Fiona Ouks in 2013 (4:20:02) by 14 minutes in an extraordinary fight.
The Latvian had to wait less than an hour for the second women’s finisher until Grace Jao (5:10:10) arrived from the USA and Julia Hunter from the USA / Great Britain. The closest followers of the original Evia Rhine arrived at the competition center in an hour. More than ten women started the marathon.
The Antarctic Marathon did not take place last year due to a global pandemic, and the participation of about half a hundred runners was postponed to mid-December this year. For the event of 2021, the road was almost blocked by a storm, which made it dangerous to fly to the coldest continent at the beginning of the week. Although it is summer in the Antarctic and the sun does not set, the temperature had dropped to -30… -40 degrees. Air traffic was disrupted and not only marathoners but also researchers in South America could return to take off.
Marathoners in southern Chile spent the days planning their return journeys, as most runners could no longer catch pre-booked flights to reach Europe by Christmas. Latvian Evija Reine also lost tickets to the Atacama Desert, which was to be visited after the Antarctic Marathon. An additional concern was the constant tests of Covid-19, which no longer counted on both fingers, although only one test was initially planned. Fearing a positive result, the runners left the hotel rooms day after day only for lunch, although the last training before the competition was necessary.
The December 17 flight to Antarctica was almost the last possible race, as some of the participants were ready to return without fulfilling their dream of the closest marathon to the South Pole. As a compromise, the decision was made to spend the night in Antakrtide only one night and return to South America as early as Saturday, running the marathon late Friday night without further acclimatization shortly after landing.
The only communication with Antarctica is possible with satellite phones and marathon participants without two days of communication with their relatives.
Evia Reine spent almost two weeks in Punta Arenas, south of Chile, where the air temperature at night is +4 degrees and +17 degrees during the day: “It all depends on the wind. There has been a lot of wind in the last week. Just like the wind, it’s cold and you need a down jacket, but there are times when the sun warms up and you can go out in your shorts.
The night after the marathon is planned in a double tent. Asked about catering, the first Latvian marathoner in Antarctica answers: “Eating will be three times a day, there will be warm food. Snacks will be available for the rest of the day. As far as I’ve heard in previous years, the food there is excellent.
Absolutely everything that will be taken there must be brought back. Nothing, nothing must be left to protect the continent. “
Liepāja was prepared for three different situations, also taking into account the temperature of the senses given by the wind effect: “We will know about how to dress only before the competition. I have three different versions, it all depends on the temperature and the wind. I have a light version designed for temperatures from -12 ..- 15 degrees, but the feeling of wind is completely different. Then there are the clothes designed for temperatures around -25 degrees. It’s hard to say how it will be. We’ll see it all on the spot. “
Like other runners, Evija Reine usually performs various rituals before the race. This time you have to do without them. There were 58 participants in the competition list, one of whom did not reach Chile, while in Antarctica the rest were waiting for several more participants, the total number reaching 62 marathoners.
