For the first time ever, the Adventure Racing World Championships will be hosted on the African continent in 2023. Expedition Africa, an annual multi-day adventure racing organisation will host the championship event in the Kouga region of the Eastern Cape in October.
The 700km multi-disciplinary race will be the culmination of the 2023 Adventure Racing World Series and will include mountain biking, trail running and trekking, river kayaking and navigation.
‘When we staged our first Expedition Africa 11 years ago, we never dreamed of this, and over those 10 races we have met wonderful athletes and teams from all around the world,’ said Heidi Muller, a Race Director of Expedition Africa. ‘It will be a celebration of all that is good about adventure racing; exploration, achievement, teamwork and connecting people from around the world.’
The first Expedition Africa event was held in 2011 in the Western Cape and the race has visited most provinces of the country, as well as neighbouring Swaziland. This year, the 10th-anniversary race took place in the Mountain Kingdom of Lesotho where the Estonian ACE Adventure Team won the race. Their team captain Silver Eensaar said: ‘Dot-watchers enjoy exploring Africa while following the teams and the race always provides world-class media content for fans around the world. They will stage a great World Championships.’
‘For an Adventure Race of this magnitude, we need to find an area which is far away from any human development, to ensure teams have a true wilderness experience and race in unique terrain,’ added Stephan Muller, also a Race Director. ‘At the same time we have to be able to deliver fast and dependable logistics, transition areas that offer a welcome respite from the wild and accommodation with strong internet facilities for the world’s media.’
The Eastern Cape is a fitting destination with its 800 km of unspoilt coastline and some of the world’s best beaches. Wildlife is abundant and the big five can be spotted at private reserves, such as Kariega Game Reserve, and national parks like the Addo National Park.
The 60,000 square kilometre Baviaanskloof Mega Reserve was recently created a World Heritage Site and the Kouga Wilderness area is a vast expanse of rocky passes and gorges, indigenous forests, crystal mountain streams, sheer cliffs and waterfalls.
The race venue is at the Cape St Francis Resort. Entries for the 2023 Championships open in November 2022. For more information, email [email protected]
Pictures: Bruce Viaene
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