The final 4 Deserts event of the year kicks off with the Sahara Race in Egypt, located in the hottest place on Earth across an ocean of sand and Antarctic-like landscape

(October 28, 2006) – Seventeen countries will be represented at the Sahara Race (Egypt) 2006 which launches Sunday just outside Farafra Oases under towering peaks of limestone in the Sahara Desert of Egypt.   In what is also known as the hottest place on Earth, the Sahara Desert, competitors will traverse Antarctic-like landscape containing white limestone rock formations shaped over millions of years from wind erosion and endless sand dunes before ending in front of The Sphinx at the Pyramids of Giza.  The Sahara Race caps off the 4 Deserts series in 2006 with nearly 300 competitors competing in a 4 Deserts event – an increase of roughly 50% from 2005.

An international and diverse group of competitors will be competing in the Sahara Race with ages ranging from 24 – 67.   Twenty-seven percent of the competitors are veterans of other 4 Deserts events.  The field also includes Korean Byeung Sik Ahn, the champion of the Gobi March 2006, and Italian Francesco Galanzino, a top three finisher in the Gobi March 2006 and Atacama Crossing 2006.  Canadian Sandra K. McCallum, a perennial top finisher in the women’s division, will also be competing.  Japanese Satoru Otsuka, the only person in the world to have completed all the 4 Deserts events, will be participating in his eighth 4 Deserts event.  Hunter Ellis, host of The History Channel’s ‘Man, Moment and Machine’ and a former contestant on the popular Survivor television series, will be competing as part of a three-person team.

Mary K. Gadams, the founder of the 4 Deserts commented:  “This year’s Sahara Race will be simple:  sand and more sand.  It will be both mentally and physically grueling, yet with spectacular scenery unlike anywhere else in the world.  Competitors won’t have a lot of altitude but rather what the locals refer to as ‘Hamada.’  This means ‘flat out.’”

Many competitors in the Sahara Race will be raising money for charities.   Several of these charities include:  The Anthony Nolan Trust, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, International Medical Corps. (UK), Scottish Society for Autism, ASPIRE, the Fun & Fit Club of Olive Crest and CARE International.  Martyn Sawyer, a hotelier from Hong Kong, will be raising money for Camp Quality in Hong Kong -- he also plans to complete the entire 4 Deserts series.

Fortune Magazine and Bloomberg Television are the official media partners of the Sahara Race (Egypt) 2006, and will also be the media partners for the entire 4 Deserts series. MBC, one of Korea’s top television channels, will film the Sahara Race for a television special.  NBC, one of the top channels in the United States, will be filming a segment for the Jeep World of Adventure Sports show to air later in the year.

The Pepsi Cola Company (Egypt's) Aquafina brand of mineral water will be airing a radio campaign in Egypt detailing the history of the 4 Deserts.  Aquafina has provided 9000 liters of water for the Sahara Race 2006.  Johns Hopkins Institute and the University of California at Davis will be conducting medical research at the Sahara Race.  RacingThePlanet will be testing merchandise for its own line of products.

Website coverage of the Sahara Race (Egypt) 2006 can be found at www.sahararace.com featuring hundreds of pictures, breaking news texts, daily journals, video clips, field updates and full results.

About RacingThePlanet®

RacingThePlanet Limited is an international outdoor lifestyle brand and global leader in organizing some of the world's most prestigious outdoor events including the 4 Deserts, a series of 7-day footraces across the world's largest and most forbidding deserts. These events include the Gobi March in China, the Atacama Crossing in Chile, the Sahara Race in Egypt and The Last Desert in Antarctica. These locations represent the driest, hottest, coldest and windiest places on Earth. The 4 Deserts attracts individuals from all backgrounds and from all walks of life, the majority being professionals including bankers, lawyers, airline pilots and medical doctors. The 4 Deserts is one of the world’s most prestigious outdoor events. With several ancillary business units including an online merchandise shop, a television and film production unit and an online portal, RacingThePlanet Limited is headquartered in Hong Kong. For further information about RacingThePlanet, please visit the website at www.racingtheplanet.com.

For further information about the Sahara Race in Egypt, please contact Catherine A. Cole at ccole@racingtheplanet.com or visit the website at www.racingtheplanet.com.