Up the game. Define your limits. The North Face 100®

In its third year, The North Face 100® Asia Pacific series is a grueling 100km endurance running event honoring the true spirit of exploration. The ultimate in ultra-distance trail running challenges, the series is the largest of its kind in this part of the world, daring athletes to push the bar as far as it can go.

It is no wonder that The North Face 100® Asia Pacific series has become the most well-received and anticipated distance trail running series in the Asia Pacific region, offering a unique experience that traditional marathon and road running simply cannot match. Indeed, the popularity of The North Face 100® Asia Pacific series has gained significant traction, quintupling its number of participants to over 5,900 entrants in 2009 from the first year, with the number of countries involved rising from four in 2008 to six in 2010.

Participants not only have to go a longer distance, and the physical and mental demands are also much higher – the race involves altitude changes, while needing great balancing skills on some of the roads’ rugged surfaces. The challenge is about running farther than one has ever imagined, and absolutely destroying all the limits while dealing with constantly changing running environments.

This year The North Face 100® Asia Pacific series will be held in the following Asia Pacific cities:
April 25-26 Philippines
May 8 China
May 15-16 Australia
Oct 9 Singapore
Nov 7 Japan
Nov Thailand

Depending on the cities, categories other than the 100km races are also open so runners of various levels can experience trail endurance running. Each of the trails in these countries offers a one of a kind experience to participants, grand vistas, historic monuments, mountain ranges, raging rivers and all types of terrain and climate accompany the runners as they try to beat the only challenger: themselves.

“As always, the spirit of exploration and pushing the boundaries is deeply imbedded in The North Face® tradition,” said Bruno Feltracco, Vice President/Managing Director of Outdoor & Action Sports, VF Asia Pacific. “Like how we constantly push boundaries in our design and products to enable athletes in achieving more, we are very pleased to provide a platform in which runners of different levels can test themselves and realize the ultimate spirit of The North Face® brand and true sportsmanship.”

Although it has a relatively short history in Asia, The North Face 100® Asia Pacific series has already become a training ground for emerging athletes, ready to break on the scene. Yun Yanqiao (second in 2009 China stop Men’s category) and Xing Ruling (first in 2009 China stop Women’s category) have been sponsored by The North Face® since their victories and have been sent to compete in the Singapore stop and The North Face® Endurance Challenge Championship in San Francisco. And The North Face is hotly anticipating the next in a series of grueling endurance races to enrapture the hearts and minds of running fans all over the world.

The competition also offers runners a chance to run with world-class athletes from The North Face® global athlete team like famous Japanese runner Kaburaki Tsuyoshi (3rd in the 166km The North Face® Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc 2009), and Diane Van Deren (first woman in the 430-mile Yukon Arctic Ultra). Competitors from a range of different backgrounds also come together to share and learn, and experience these great runs through the running clubs, training clinics and online communities that have been set up with this series. For more information, visit www.thenorthface100.com.

About The North Face®
The North Face®, a subsidiary of VF Corporation, was founded in 1966. Headquartered in San Leandro, California, the company offers the most technically advanced products in the market to accomplished climbers, mountaineers, snowsport athletes and explorers. The company’s products are sold in specialty mountaineering, backpacking and snowsport retailers, premium-sporting goods retailers and major outdoor specialty retail chains. Additional information about The North Face® can be found on the company’s website, www.thenorthface.com.
The North Face® is the world’s premier outdoor brand with global distribution network. Our Asia distributions include China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan*, Korea*, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Nepal, Mongolia, Australia and New Zealand.
* In Japan and Korea, The North Face® is a registered trademark of Goldwin Co., Ltd.