We stood vigil on the finish line in Pilcopata last night until all the runners had returned from the Long Day, the final and longest challenge of the race. That runner was Nir Greenberg who arrived at almost 1am, over 20hrs after he left camp at Villa Carmen, and brought this race to a close. Those among the runners who could stay awake sat with us in the Plaza Major and chatted through their experiences over the last week, long into the dark.

A more full race blog will follow once we’re at the other end of our epic journey home, but for now, it suffices to say a massive congratulations to our overall winner Jon Shield who has now one 2 BTU races this year. 2nd position goes to Sergey Shcherbakov and 3rd to Bert Gossey.

Sheila Sanei also claims her 2nd win this year, after another excellent run. Sheila has vocally worried on this trip that she wasn’t tough enough for this environment but she proved herself wrong as we all told her she would. She not only takes the overall win but grabbed Queen of the Hill on Stage Four too. 2nd placed woman was Veronique Levein who has shown immense toughness throughout and who we know has many followers at home who are incredibly pleased for her, with the indomitable Marie-Louise Pharoany taking 3rd.

Two double champions in a single race is unprecedented and we’re really excited to announce that at the medal ceremony soon to be held in the main square.

The final plaudit goes to Charlie Good, a massive, affable character, full of infectious energy, who put in a huge effort to take the King of the Hill section on Stage Four.

Stage Five Results:

Overall Standings: Please note – Jon Shield and Sergey Shcherbakov were awarded a 53-minute time bonus yesterday due to a logistical issue outside their control.