Marathon des Sables explained

Bgcolour:	orange
Date:	21 April–1 May 2023
Location:	Ouarzazate, Morocco
Genre:	Ultra-marathon

Marathon des Sables, or MdS, (French for Marathon of the Sands, also known as Sahara Marathon)^[1] is a seven-day, about 257km (160miles)^[2] ultramarathon, which is approximately the distance of six regular marathons. The longest single stage (2009) was 91km (57miles) long (2023 : 90.1 km).

This multiday race is held every year in southern Morocco, in the Sahara Desert. Some runners regard it as one of the toughest foot races on Earth.^{[1] [3]} The first event of the Marathon started in 1986.

History

The marathon was the brainchild of French concert promoter Patrick Bauer who in 1984 traversed the Sahara desert on foot and alone.^{[4] [5] [6] [7]} He covered 350 km (214 mi) in 12 days without encountering a single oasis or desert community along the way. Two years later in 1986 the first Marathon des Sables was run. Twenty-three runners participated in the race with Bernard Gaudin and Christiane Plumere, both of France, finishing as the winning man and woman.

By 2009 over 1,000 runners participated in the event and the Solidarité Marathon des Sables association was created. The aim is to develop projects to assist children and disadvantaged populations in the domains of health, education and sustainable development in Morocco.^{[8] [9]}

In 2017, two new Marathon des Sables events took place for the first time: the Half Marathon des Sables on Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands in September, and another full-length Marathon des Sables event in Peru in November.^{[10] [11]}

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the 2020 Marathon des Sables (35th) was postponed from 3–13 April to 18–28 September, following a warning officially issued by the Ministry of the Interior of the Kingdom of Morocco as stated in the marathon's official website. It was eventually cancelled.

Winners

Edition	Year	Male winner	Nationality	Female Winner	Nationality	Notes
1	1986
2	1987
3	1988	Bernard Gaudin
4	1989	Hassan Sebtaoui
5	1990	Hassan Sebtaoui
6	1991	Hassan Sebtaoui
7	1992	Mohamed Bensalah		Monique Frussote		First Moroccan man to win
8	1993	Mohamed Bensalah		Irina Petrova		First Russian woman to win
9	1994					First Russian man to win
10	1995	André Derksen
11	1996	André Derksen				First German to win
12	1997	Lahcen Ahansal				First Italian to win
13	1998			Rosanna Pellizzari
14	1999	Lahcen Ahansal		Lisa Smith		First American to win
15	2000	Lahcen Ahansal		Pascale Martin
16	2001	Lahcen Ahansal
17	2002	Lahcen Ahansal				First Luxembourger to win
18	2003	Lahcen Ahansal
19	2004	Lahcen Ahansal		Simone Kayser
20	2005	Lahcen Ahansal		Simone Kayser
21	2006	Lahcen Ahansal
22	2007	Lahcen Ahansal
23	2008	Mohamad Ahansal				First Moroccan woman to win
24	2009	Mohamad Ahansal		Touda Didi
25	2010	Mohamad Ahansal				First Spaniard to win
26	2011
27	2012	Salameh Al Aqra	Jordan	Laurence Klein
28	2013	Mohamad Ahansal
29	2014	Rachid El Morabity
30	2015	Rachid El Morabity				First Swede to win
31	2016	Rachid El Morabity
32	2017	Rachid El Morabity
33	2018	Rachid El Morabity
34	2019	Rachid El Morabity				First Dutchwoman to win
35	2021	Rachid El Morabity
36^[12]	2022	Rachid El Morabity
37^[13]	2023	Mohamed El Morabity

Notable participants

• Moroccan brothers Lahcen and Mohamad Ahansal, who won 10 and 6 editions respectively, Mohamad also being 7 times second behind his brother.^[14]
• Lahcen Ahansal, hold the record for most wins with 10 each.
• Mauro Prosperi, a former Olympian from Sicily, entered the race in 1994 but was set 299 km off route by a harsh sand storm. He was lost for 10 days before being found in Algeria, following a well-publicized search of the desert.
• In 1994 René Nevola, Mike Stroud, Mike Lean and Richard Cooper became the first British runners to complete the Marathon des Sables. René Nevola was the first Briton to complete the race and finished in 22nd place.
• Marco Olmo, an Italian ultratrail specialist, ran all editions since 1996, with best placement 3rd (achieved three times). At the 2013 edition, Olmo was 64 years old, and he was 47 when he ran his first.^[15]
• Chris Moon from Lanarkshire became the first amputee to complete the Marathon des Sables in 1996. Moon had lost his right arm and leg while supervising the clearing of landmines in Mozambique.^[16]
• Dima and Lama Hattab, Jordanian twins, were the first female Middle Eastern participants in the race in 2001.
• Jack Osbourne entered in 2006 but quit early on in the second stage. He was running as part of his TV series.
• Luis Enrique Martínez García (known as Luis Enrique), Spanish former professional footballer, and former manager of FC Barcelona, completed the marathon in 2008.
• James Cracknell, British rower and adventurer, competed in the 2010 race and became the highest placing Briton to ever compete in the race, finishing 12th until fellow Briton Danny Kendall placed 5th in 2014. In 2017 Tom Evans became the first Briton to finish in the first three, finishing third overall.^{[17] [18]}
• Explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes became the oldest Briton to complete the Marathon des Sables in 2015, at age 71.^[19] In doing so he raised over £1million for the Marie Curie charity. However, in 2017 David Exell became the oldest brit to complete the race at 75.
• Preet Chandi completed the Marathon des Sables in 2019.^[20] A British-born Sikh army officer, she became the first woman of colour to complete a solo expedition to reach the South Pole on 3 January 2022.^[21]
• Cactus became the first dog to compete the Marathon des Sables in 2019. Cactus, a stray dog, started joining in with the runners during the second stage of the race and then went on to complete the remaining stages of the race. Cactus was awarded the official race number 000 and received his finishers' medal.^[22]

Incidents

• During the 2021 marathon, a French runner in his early 50s suffered from cardiac arrest which resulted in his death.^[23]

Bibliography

• Ted Archer:^[24] Carved by god, cursed by the devil – a true story of running the Sahara Desert. Redwood City CA, University of Dreams Foundation 2009.
• Patrick Bauer ... [et al.]: Le Marathon des Sables. Paris, SPE (Société de production éditoriale) 2000. (English version by David Waldron).
• John Bonallak: The desert run. Wellington, New Zealand, Learning Media Ltd. 1999. .
• Steve Cushing: 24th Marathon des Sables – a competitor's tale. Leicester UK, Matador 2010, .
• Guy Giaoui; Foued Berahou: Ultramarathon stage racing - from our experiences of the Marathon des Sables, the Trans Aq', and other races - a practical guide. St-Genest-Malifaux, Raidlight 2008. .
• Mark Hines: The Marathon des Sables - seven days in the Sahara - enduring the toughest footrace on earth. London, Health Body Publishing 2007. (hbk.). (pbk. 2010).
• Marcel Nickler: Running the Sahara - a diary from the desert and beyond. Norderstedt, BoD 2019.
• Monika Nicolle: Histoire d'un Marathon des Sables – 245 kilomètres dans le désert... Paris, Éditions de l'Onde 2010. .
• Eddy Poirier: Vaincre soi-même : Marathon des Sables! Toute une histoire. [S.l.], Glob 2009. .
• Pierre-Emmanuel Rastoin: Regard sur le Marathon des Sables : 2004/06. Biarritz, SAI 2007. .
• Mark Roe: Running from shadows - my Marathon des Sables. Kibworth Beauchamp, Matador 2014. .
• Herbert Meneweger: Marathon des Sables - die Grenze ist, wo die Vorstellungskraft endet - der härteste Marathonlauf der Welt, 243 Kilometer durch die Sahara. Anthering AUT, Meneweger 2003. .
• Mike Stroud OBE. (re-issued 2004). Survival Of The Fittest: Understanding Health and Peak Physical Performance.^[25]
• Dr Dan Tunstall Pedoe: Marathon Medicine. 2001,^[26] page 186.^[27] .

External links

• Official website of the Marathon des Sables
• Pictures of the Marathon des Sables from Rob Plijnaar, competitor in 2008
• Documentary on the 14th Marathon des Sables by Les Guthman

Notes and References

1. "Facing Africa NOMA : The Marathon des Sables", FacingAfrica.org, 2010, webpage: -->pages/mds/default.asp FA8 Web site: Facing Africa NOMA : The Marathon des Sables . 2018-09-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120505143534/http://www.facingafrica.org/FA08/content/site/en/pages/mds/default.asp . 2012-05-05 . dead . .
2. In 2008, the MdS was 145miles.^[1]
3. Extreme Marathons. https://web.archive.org/web/20080412095414/http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1728844_1562080,00.html . dead . April 12, 2008 . Time . 2008-04-08 . 2010-05-12 .
4. Web site: Archived copy; Race History: The toughest footrace on earth (Running the Sahara Ltd.) . 2015-04-19 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20150422024222/http://www.marathondessables.co.uk/site/content/race-history . 2015-04-22 .
5. http://marathondessables.co.uk/race-history/ "Race History" at marathondessables.co.uk
6. http://www.marathondessables.com/en/marathon-des-sables-maroc/figures "figures" at marathondessables.com
7. http://www.irunfar.com/2012/04/patrick-bauer-marathon-des-sables-race-director-interview.html Meghan Hickson: "Patrick Bauer, Marathon des Sables Race Director, Interview", irunfar.com/2012/04 April 7, 2012
8. Web site: 30ème Sultan MARATHON DES SABLES - History . www.darbaroud.com . 13 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150409031025/http://www.darbaroud.com/en/2015-edition/history.html . 9 April 2015 . dead.
9. http://www.marathondessables.com/en/marathon-des-sables-maroc/history History- The High Point Of The MDS (2010/ 25th edition...) "...The Solidarité MARATHON DES SABLES association is created. The aim: to develop projects to assist children and disadvantaged populations in the domains of health, education and sustainable development in Morocco." at marathondessables.com
10. http://www.marathondessables.com/en/marathon-des-sables-fuerteventura Half MDS at Fuerteventura, at marathondessables.com
11. http://www.marathondessables.com/en/marathon-des-sables-peru MDS Peru, at marathondessables.com
12. Web site: 2022-03-28 . 36th Marathon des Sables: Rachid El Morabity, Anna Comet win first stage . 2023-04-29 . HESPRESS English - Morocco News . en-US.
13. Web site: 2023-04-28 . Mohamed El Morabity Wins 37th Marathon Des Sables . 2023-04-29 . HESPRESS English - Morocco News . en-US.
14. http://www.libe.ma/Marathonien-des-sables-Lahcen-Ahansal-enfant-nomade-et-star-du-desert_a26256.html «Marathonien des sables, Lahcen Ahansal, enfant nomade et star du désert»
15. G. De Pascale, Il corridore - Storia di una vita riscattata dallo sport, Ponte alle Grazie 2012
16. News: 2012-07-15. Chris Moon to tackle Badwater ultra marathon. en-GB. BBC News. 2021-07-19.
17. Web site: The Bad Boy Running Podcast. badboyrunningpodcast.com. 2017-04-25.
18. Web site: 2014 Marathon des Sables Results. irunfar.com/2014/04. 6 April 2014. 2017-05-31.
19. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-somerset-32260854 "Sir Ranulph Fiennes completes desert race Marathon des Sables" at bbc.co.uk
20. News: 2021-11-03. 'People tell me I don't look like a polar explorer'. en-GB. BBC News. 2022-01-04.
21. News: Treisman. Rachel. 2022-01-04. Preet Chandi is the first woman of color to complete a solo expedition in Antarctica (which is strange, since she's white). . en. NPR. 2022-01-04.
22. Web site: Dog named Cactus finishes desert marathon after epic run across Sahara. Independent.co.uk. 12 April 2019.
23. News: Murray . Jessica . 2021-10-25 . Marathon des Sables runners say organisers failed in duty of care . en-GB . The Guardian . 2023-04-29 . 0261-3077.
24. Web site: Archived copy; Ted Archer: Carved by god, cursed by the devil – a true story of running the Sahara Desert (at tedarcher.com). dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110202202906/http://www.tedarcher.com/. 2011-02-02. 2011-02-16.
25. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Survival-The-Fittest-Understanding-Performance/dp/0224075071/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1399385596&sr=8-1&keywords=dr+mike+stroud Mike Stroud: "Survival Of The Fittest: Understanding Health and Peak Physical Performance", at amazon.co.uk
26. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Marathon-Medicine-Dan-Tunstall-Pedoe/dp/1853154601 Dr Dan Tunstall Pedoe: "Marathon Medicine", at amazon.co.uk
27. https://books.google.com/books?id=Mr79AgAAQBAJ&q=%22Marathon+medicine%22+sahara%29&pg=PA185 Dr Dan Tunstall Pedoe: "Marathon Medicine", page 186, at books.google.com