Even the storm that battered the coast and displaced dozens of track markers earlier this week hasn’t been able to dampen the spirits of the runners and walkers who, come rain or shine, had already completed an impressive 142,000 kilometres by the event’s halfway point.  

The 2023 edition of the popular No Finish Line race for charity is blowing last year’s numbers out of the water. By the halfway point – 7.30pm on 14th November – participants had achieved an epic 142,241 kilometres, which is 30,000 kilometres more than the distance covered during the same period in 2022.  

The kilometres are really racking up now; the 100,000-kilometre mark was hit at 6am on the Tuesday, meaning that 42,000 of the total number of kilometres recorded midway through the race were amassed in just 13 and a half hours. 

HITTING GOALS IN SPITE OF WEATHER 

According to the event’s organisers, these are “very promising first results”, which will hopefully be able to withstand the disruption caused by the storm that came through the region on the night between 14th and 15th November.  

The 10,988 participants recorded thus far include a few mid-race standouts who deserve a mention, such as Cédric Chaudet, who is leading the overall number of kilometres covered by an individual so far with 431km, and Mimi Chevillon, who tops the women’s contributions with 379km. The team with the most distance racked up at the halfway mark is the Cardio-Thoracic Centre of Monaco, which already has 4,802 kilometres under its belt.  

Peak attendance, according to statistics released by No Finish Line on 15th November, is from 11am to 2pm and from 5pm to 10pm, syncing up with when most people have lunch breaks or are finished with work for the day.

The overall goal is to hit 300,000 kilometres by the end of the race at 4pm on 19th November.  

SPORTS PERSONALITIES MAKING APPEARANCES 

Numerous athletes from Monaco or representing the Principality with a team have answered the call, including race car pilot Arthur Leclerc on 12th November. The Roca Team are expected to participate en masse on 17th November, following their EuroLeague game in Madrid, with No Finish Line sponsor and AS Monaco Basketball captain Yakuba Ouattara likely to lead the team’s efforts.  

The race has 45 runners from France and abroad who are registered to be on the track for the entire eight days of the race, and 200 participants, as teams or individuals, are signed up to compete in the 24-hour marathon that begins at 9am on 18th November. It is an official event that features on the off-stadium races calendar of the French Athletics Federation.  

ABOUT NO FINISH LINE

No Finish Line was created in Monaco in 1999 and has grown to become a worldwide phenomenon.

Its goal is the promotion, defence and respect of children’s rights in the world, as well as the improvement of general well-being and living conditions. 

Since 2004, the local event has donated the majority of its profits to the Cardio Thoracic Centre of Monaco, which finances operations for children with serious heart defects. This is made possible thanks to the collaboration with other associations such as Rencontres Africaines, which organises for African children undergoing surgery to be hosted by families in the Nice region. 

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Photo credits: André Faure / No Finish Line