Comrades 2010: Official announcement

Below is the official announcement of the 2010 Comrades marathon (an 89 KM ultra, and the world’s biggest ultramarathon, between Peitermaritzburg and Durban in South Africa) from the latest Comrades newsletter. I am already looking forward to pressing the buttons for registration on my PC on Nov 1st, actually the day on which I will be running my 5th consecutive Airtel Delhi Half Marathon as well. Looking forward to the day already.

Race Day for 2010 Comrades Marathon is Sunday 30 May.

2010 ANNOUNCEMENT

The overwhelming response for entries for the 2009 Comrades Marathon is hopefully a sign of the excellent interest in the Comrades Marathon. The 17% increase in race entries this year must be attributed to the extensive marketing campaign undertaken by the CMA, both locally and abroad.

The 2010 Comrades Marathon also coincides with the 85th anniversary of The Ultimate Human Race. 2010 will see the race run from Pietermaritzburg to Durban, a down run. The CMA will enter into an extensive marketing campaign, through various mediums, as well as road shows across South Africa. The CMA has also put in place a comprehensive international marketing campaign, the first step of which has been achieved with the appointment of International Ambassadors across Europe, South and North America, and Australia.

Entry numbers for the 2010 and 85th anniversary of the Comrades Marathon will be capped at 20000 runners, and no extensions will be entered into. Thus making the 2010 run a special event as the CMA has never had a cut off number in the past. We are confident that this number will be achieved very quickly as in 2000 we received 24000 entries. Therefore we urge all runners and potential runners that wish to run in 2010 to take careful note of the entry process and the closing dates. We therefore request that you enter early to avoid disappointment. Entries will be done in 2 phases.

Phase 1

1 September 2009 entries will open to all previous Comrades Runners. Phase 1 will be capped at 15000 entrants and will close on 31 October 2009, or whichever comes first (eg. if we receive 15000 entries by the 10 October 2009 then no further entries will be accepted).

Phase 2

1 November 2009 entries will open to all Novices and will be capped at 5000. Entries will close on 30 November 2009, or whichever comes first (eg. if we received 5000 novice entries by 15 November 2009 then no further entries will be accepted).

Total number of entries will be capped at 20000.

Qualifying period for 2010 will be from 24 May 2009 to 26 April 2010. Runners who finished the 2009 Comrades Marathon can use their finishing time as a 2010 qualifier.

As in 2009, runners will be able to enter before they qualify. This means while all entries will have to meet the entry criteria above, runners will still be allowed to qualify in official qualifying races up until the month of April, with the 26th April as the final closing date. Upon qualification, runners simply need to give the time and details of the qualifying race through to the CMA office. Upon receiving the qualifying information the runner’s entry will be confirmed.
Failure to meet or submit your qualify details will result in your entry being rejected and your details will be removed from our database, which means that you will not receive a postcard, goodie bag or runners t-shirt. Under no circumstances will refunds be made.

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