The inaugural Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge has come to a close with Team Eurosport NZ claiming the victory over rival Nike and Wilsa Helly Hansen, who finished second and third respectively.
Today's stage consisted of a combination of trail running and mountain biking, with a ropes section thrown in for good measure. Going into the day, Eurosport held a lead of less than 3 minutes over Nike, but by the end of stage the finished 20 minutes up on the World Champs. The winning team consists of Captain Richard Ussher, Elina Ussher, Aaron Prince, and Gordon Walker. Nike team member Sari Anderson suffered through the final stage with two twisted and swollen ankles that hampered her ability to run in a stage that was heavy on running.
Team Orionhealth.com, an impressive rising star in the adventure racing world, finished fourth, while French team Lafuma Sport 2000 claimed fifth.
From all accounts, it seems like this was an excellent race, especially considering it's the first year of it's existence. The stage format seemed to suit the teams very well, and there was an impressive field of competitors. The other thing of interest is that Nike didn't dominate the race as we've seen in the past, and the Kiwi's of Eurosport were able to fend them off at every turn. Was this a fluke or are there finally some chinks in the armor? Will these two teams go head to head again at next year's Primal Quest? Guess we'll have to wait and see.
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