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COMPETITORS' CORNER Espagnole Contra el Cancer pour Jorge (D1061) Winners of the 24 MDS Meningitis Trust for Peter (D970) Marco Olmo (ITA) Macmillan Cancer for Siobhan (D269) & Neal (D271) PAYASOS SIN FRONTERAS for Ivan (D1075) Christian GINTER (FR) GREENPEACE for Michael (D702) UWKC for Kyle (D679) Paolo, Karim & Michel JDRF for Alex (D701) NOMA for Julius (D586) Ernie Els for Autism for Adam (D383)
3 generations in the same edition of the MDS!!! It is possible and will be put into practice by the LEONARDI and GIACOMETTI family. Claude LEONARDI (father), Thierry LEONARDI (son) and Loic GIACOMETTI (grandson) will compete together (the grandson is the son’s nephew). A trio to keep an eye on.... more
The 25th MARATHON DES SALES in April 2010 will have the pleasure and honour of welcoming its first Olympic Gold medalist at the starting line. James Cracknell (GB-D812) has won 6 rowing World Championships as well as 2 gold medals in the Olympic Games (2000 and 2004) more
Administrative document
Any administrative document (including the balance of payment....) not here by January 31st, 2010 will systematically be penalized by 30 mn per document. more
25th MDS = 250 kms
In october,, Mr Patrick Bauer was with his "fine" team of patrollers. Setting off to survey the area for the creation of the “famous” 25th MDS course, we were able to glean a comment for future participants:
"Exclusively for the darbaroud.com website, I can reveal and confirm what numerous competitors have imagined for the 2010 edition! Yes indeed, the course, which is still made up of 6 stages, has been slightly extended to reach a total of 250 km - the 25th anniversary requires this! The itinerary will be packed with the most beautiful sites in the Saharan provinces. The menu will include dunes, mountains, dried up lakes, regs, oases and ... more dunes!"
Darbaroud.com has set up a new "PRESS WEB" section (see left-hand column on this page). This section is updated as publications appear and includes all the Press articles which have appeared on the Web concerning MARATHON DES SABLES or a competitor’s participation in the event.Thank you to Madonna, who has made a large MDS advertising campaign possible, in numerous countries: from the USA to Albania, India, Vietnam, Russia and many others (more than fifty articles already on the Web). At present Madonna is not registered for MDS, but who can predict the future !!!
A new look for the MDS visuals
For the 25th anniversary, AOI wanted to give the logo a new youthful makeover. This was achieved with the involvement of Emilie Caillaud-Houel, a graphic designer who has been a volunteer on the MDS team for 3 years. more
TIMING MDS number ID marks
Certain brands claim their bag is suitable—even recommended—for the MDS. Such claims are false. These bags frequently impede the proper positioning of the number—so do beware of the penalties! It is imperative to make sure that straps and/or hip packs are compatible with this very specific rule. more
Competitors on 25th MDS LET’S TALK ABOUT YOU !
If you’re enrolled on the 25th MARATHON DES SABLES to raise money for a charity or an aid project ... more
FLIGHT DEPARTURE FROM FRANCE ORLY SUD Airport
Several planes (4) are chartered for the 25th MDS. AOI does not yet know the times of these special flights. All competitors enrolled will be sent details of the times of their flight transfers at the start of March. However, you should allow for an early departure on 02nd april from ORLY SUD airport. From Morocco, the 12th april the flight will arrive to ORLY SUD airport
TIMING MDS Rucksack
Following a study of three categories of runner : Englishmen, Frenchmen and Leaders. more
Ouarzazate on the front line
At the beginning of the week, His Majesty the King of Morocco received American Secretary of State Mrs Hillary Clinton, in Ouarzazate. Mr Patrick Bauer was with his "fine" team of patrollers. We must also acknowledge also the presence of staff from the charity SOLIDARITE MARATHON DES SABLESwho had come to set up a project dedicated to the children of the commune.
MDS is not an orientation course, but when crossing ergs (dune zones) where it’s very difficult to mark out in a rectilinear way, it’s easier to follow the bearings indicated in the road book than to search for markings… more
For all publications in the written Press (in France and abroad) a choice of non-copyright photos is available through the organisation’s FTP website. For TV productions, video images are also available with a view to broadcasting. Contact news@darbaroud.com for more information on Press and TV production.