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Canada's Hestler Makes The Plunge
provided by Jaimeson Keegan
November 19, 2004 - Swimming in the Atlantic, mountain biking up the Corcovado, hang gliding over downtown Rio de Janeiro, running on the Copacabana - on December 5, 2004, 80 teams from more than 30 nations will test their mettle in the "Red Bull Giants of Rio." Among the extreme race's participants are Olympic medalists, as well as world champions in all kinds of disciplines.
Due to Canada's exceptional talent abound in adventure racing sports, two teams will represent the country next month. Team members include speed hang glider Brett Hazlett, currently ranked number three in the World; mountain biker Andreas Hestler, 2004 Trans-Rockies Overall Champion; and 15x Sea 2 Summit Champion Dave Norona.
The Canadian teams will face the best talent in the world at "Red Bull Giants of Rio." Mountain biking Olympic gold medalist Julien Absalon as well as Olympic gold medalist Ryk Neethling (swimming) and the best hang gliders in the world (Manfred Ruhmer, Guido Gehrmann to name a few) are among the athletes who will enter into an extraordinary team competition on 5 December: 80 four-man teams from more than 30 nations are to participate in the first "Red Bull Giants of Rio" in the sweltering summer heat of Rio de Janeiro - swimming, mountain biking, hang gliding and running to win. In this case, the attraction is not only the competition but also the xtraordinary location: jungle, sea, sand, mountains and one of the world's most fascinating cities join to form the event's stunning backdrop.
The challenges faced by the athletes are anything but ordinary: the swimming course is around four kilometers long, from the Copacabana out onto the open sea; once along the way, the swimmers have to make it over a cliff of up to four meters in height. The ca. 45-kilometer mountain bike course snakes through the narrow streets of Rio de Janeiro's inner city and up the Corcovado to the world-famous Jesus statue, down through the jungle of Tijuca National Park and on up the neighboring peak Pedra Bonita. There the team's hang gliding pilot takes over, starting on the top of the Pedra da Gávea. Depending on the weather, it's either around the Jesus statue or directly to the landing zone on the beach of Ipanema. At that point, the runners take over: they have to brave a 15-kilometer sand, concrete and asphalt route in Rio's stifling heat, through Ipanema and along the Copacabana.
The event website - www.redbullgiantsofrio.com - offers not only all information about the event and all participating teams, but also the opportunity to follow the Red Bull Giants of Rio right up close: on December 5 starting at 08:00 BC local time/11:00 EST, the relay race will be broadcast worldwide on the web!!
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