Running News Daily

An 84-year-old Canadian man, Roy Jorgen Svenningsen, became the oldest person to ever run a marathon in Antarctica as he completed the Antarctic Ice Marathon

The senior runner, Roy Jorgen Svenningsen, was not the only marathoner to set a record at the extreme running event as this year's winner, William Hafferty of the United States, clocked a new record time coming in at an impressive 3 hours, 34 minutes and 12 seconds.

Runners braved windy, yet sunny, conditions as they made two laps around the Union Glacier exploration camp just 965km from the South Pole.

The first woman across the finish line was Lenka Frycova from the Czech Republic with a time of 4 hours, 40 minutes and 38 seconds.

There were three Irish runners, with James Murphy first across the line, finishing fifth overall, in a time of 4:21:15, while Sean O'Hagan finished in 5:30:46 and Paul Grealish in 6:42:37.

But it was the most senior of the runners that inspired most, when Svenningsen crossed the line at 11 hours, 41 minutes and 58 seconds.

Race organisers said it made him the oldest person to ever complete a marathon on the continent.

They also said Svenningsen, who will soon turn 85, has completed more than 50 marathons around the world having run his first in Calgary, Canada back in 1964.

(12/16/2019) Views: 2,603 ⚡AMP

Former hurler Seamus Hennessy has completed the Antarctic Ice Marathon in 7:05:33 hrs

Former Tipperary (Ireland) hurler Seamus Hennessy has completed the Antarctic Ice Marathon in aid of Suicide Awareness in a time of 7:05:33 hours.

Hennessy, who won an All-Ireland medal with Tipperary in 2010, signed up for the grueling 26.2 mile challenge to raise money for two local charities close to his heart - Pieta House and Living Links Tipperary.

Hennessy left for Punta Arenas in South West Chile on December 8 before making his way to Union Glacier in the Antartic which is home to the southernmost marathon on the planet with conditions reaching a windchill temperature of -20C.

In 2000, when Hennessy was just 11 years old, he lost his mother Josie to suicide. In January 2013, while watching the Late Late Show at home in Cloughjordan with his father, his attention was caught by Cycle Against Suicide founder Jim Breen who was on the show to speak about the devastatingly high rates of suicide in Ireland at the time, ten suicides per week.

"Watching him, I felt I could contribute too by sharing my own story in the hope of helping others avoid the same devastating tragedy that had befallen my family and so began my involvement in sharing my story in various schools, communities, GAA clubs and at events around Ireland."

(12/14/2018) Views: 1,797 ⚡AMP

Seamus Hennessy a former hurler is ready for challenge of a lifetime in the Antartic Ice Marathon

A dodgy knee ended Seamus Hennessy’s days hurling with Tipperary, but two bad knees aren’t going to stop him running a marathon on the frozen plains of Antarctica.

Hennessy won an All-Ireland in 2010, coming off the bench to score a point in the final win over Kilkenny, and hurled his last with Tipp not long after when a seemingly innocuous complaint turned into a career-ending injury.

When he was ten years old his mother Josie, the heart and soul of her family and the local community in Cloughjordan, felt like she could no longer go on in this world and took her own life, leaving behind a massive void.

Today Hennessy will run 26.2 miles in her honor at the Antarctic Ice Marathon on Union Glacier at the bottom of the world as he aims to raise $250,000US for charities aimed at suicide prevention and helping those left behind under the Running for Josie banner.

(12/13/2018) Views: 1,938 ⚡AMP

Chris Weir has been training in a produce plant in Dallas as he gets ready to run the Antarctic Ice Marathon

Christopher Weir, is an avid marathon runner, among many other athletic pursuits. Chris, a successful Dallas businessman, has run the Dallas marathon four times and the New Orleans marathon once during the last few years. Running and finishing a marathon is special but after you’ve done it again and again, with thousands of others at each event; what do you do for an encore? Well, leave it to Chris to transcend from the mundane to the extraordinary. On December 13, the fourteenth Antarctic Ice Marathon will take place just a few hundred miles from the South Pole at the foot of the Ellsworth Mountains, the highest mountain ranges in Antarctica. Chris Weir will be on the starting line this year.  He has been training by running in the ice-cold environment of a produce plant in Dallas.  For Chris, the journey begins by flying to Punta Arenas, Chile on December 10. During the next 24 hours he, and the 54 other competitors from 14 countries around the world, will undergo a briefing about the marathon and the conditions under which it will be run. On December 12, the entire group will be transported by private jet for the four hour flight to Union Glacier, Antarctica, the icy location of the marathon. Union Glacier Camp is only accessible by air and the aircraft will land on a naturally-occurring ice runway on the Union Glacier, where competitors will take their first steps in Antarctica. Then, they will climb aboard a specially adapted van for a five mile ride to camp, where final preparations will be made for the epic event the following day. (11/28/2018) Views: 1,527 ⚡AMP

A seven-strong Australian contingent is set to take on the Antarctica marathon on December 13th

Lawyer Justin Quill will take on a unique challenge in the coming months. He’s set to take part in the Antarctic Ice Marathon, which starts on December 13. Former footballer Campbell Brown and comedian Tommy Little will form part of a seven-strong Australian contingent heading over to Antarctica to compete in the event on ice. “It’s going to be five hours in minus 20 degrees. “It’ll be a great adventure for us but we’re also raising money for spinal injuries in Australia,” they said. (11/10/2018) Views: 1,636 ⚡AMP

Ultra-marathon runner Jacqui Bell could be the youngest woman to run all four Racing The Planet ultra-marathons

Jacqui Bell is aiming to be the youngest female in the world to run the Four Deserts Grand Slam. The mission isn’t for the faint-hearted, with each desert race being a whopping 250km. Jacqui has run across three deserts so far, in Africa, South America and Asia. If that doesn’t sound tough enough, she finished each race in seven days with all her supplies on her back. “We carry all of our food, all our clothes for the week and everything on our back so we try and keep our bags as light as possible because we have to run with it,” says Jacqui. Next month, Jacqui heads off on the final leg of her challenge. This time, she’s taking on the coldest continent on earth – Antarctica. (11/10/2018) Views: 2,015 ⚡AMP