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First frozen lake marathon in India aims to flag climate change perils
The Straits Times|February 19, 2023
Ladakh event, held at altitude of 4,350m, will highlight vulnerability of fragile region
- Debarshi Dasgupta
First frozen lake marathon in India aims to flag climate change perils

NEW DELHI - It is the first-of-its-kind marathon in India. Yet, when runners cover the 21.9km stretch across the frozen Pangong Lake at an altitude of nearly 4,350m in Ladakh, they will be participating in what has been billed as "the last run".

The Pangong Frozen Lake Marathon, which takes place on Feb 20, aims to highlight the growing vulnerability of the ecologically fragile mountainous region in north India.

A key concern is climate change, = which has hastened the melting pace of Himalayan and Karakoram glaciers, rendering the future of locals who depend on its waters at great risk.

"It is this alarming message that we are trying to get across that this could be the last run," said Mr Chamba Tsetan, founder of the Adventure Sports Foundation of Ladakh. It is organising the marathon in collaboration with the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) in Leh district and other local authorities.

Seventy-five runners, including those from India, France, the United States and Britain, will take part in this race that the organisers hope will also secure them an entry in the Guinness World Records for the highest frozen lake marathon.

There are running races in other icy locales, such as the North Pole Marathon, held at sea level, and the Antarctic Ice Marathon, at 700m.

This story is from the February 19, 2023 edition of The Straits Times.

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This story is from the February 19, 2023 edition of The Straits Times.

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