Runfire Cappadocia Ultramarathon

Runfire Cappadocia Ultramarathon, shortly RFC, (Turkish: Runfire Kapadokya Ultramaratonu) is an international multiday ultramarathon event of desert concept that takes place mostly across the historic Cappadocia region in central Turkey. The event is run 244 km (152 mi) in the provinces Nevşehir and Aksaray in six days.[1] The Runfire Cappadocia Ultramarathon was established in 2012 taking place on July 7–15.[2] It is considered a race of high-degree difficulty.[3] The event is organized by Argos Culture & Arts.[4][5]

Map of Cappadocia

Runfire Cappadocia Ultramarathon
View of Cappadocia.
Date	July
Location	Cappadocia, Turkey
Event type	Multiday desert track
Distance	244 km (152 mi)
Primary sponsor	Argos Culture & Arts
Established	July 7, 2012
Course records	men's: 27:27:18 (2013) women's: 29:15:30 (2012)

Üçhisar

Location of start and finish point of the Runfire Cappadocia Ultramarathon in Üçhisar.

The route starts in front of the Uçhisar Town Hall in Nevşehir. Following the Valley of Pigeons (Güvercinlik Vadisi), Ortahisar, Acıgöl, Damsa Dam, Analipsis Monastery (Yüksekli Kilise), Güzelyurt, Avanos, Ihlara Valley, Mount Hasan and around Lake Tuz before crossing through Çavuşin and the Ürgüp and Göreme valleys, the marathon ends in Üçhisar, where it started.[1][6][7] The longest daily stage is on salt flats around Lake Tuz with 93 km (58 mi).[8] The route features elevations between 900–1,700 m (3,000–5,600 ft), valleys, salt lake flats, spectacular rock formations and UNESCO World Heritage sites as well as cave churches and galleries, historic underground cities that made Cappadocia a world-famous tourism destination.[4][5]

The event is accredited by Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc, one of the world’s most prestigious marathons. Finishers are awarded four points, which entitle them to participate at the world’s major ultramarathons.[3] The International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU) included the RFC in its competition calendar, and titled it a bronze-label event in 2013.[4][5][9]

At the first race in 2012, some 60 local and foreign athletes of both gender took part, among them ultra runners from Denmark, France, Italy, Russia and South Africa.[3]

Winners

Key:   Course record

Year	Men's winner	Time (h:m:s)	Women's winner	Time (h:m:s)
2012[10]	Mahmut Yavuz	27:59:43	Elena Polyakova	33:51:52
2013[10]	Mahmut Yavuz	27:27:18	Elena Polyakova	29:15:30
2014

References

1. "Runfire Kapadokya Maratonu sona erdi". Zaman (in Turkish). Archived from the original on 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
2. "Races 2012". International Association of Ultrarunners. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
3. "Runfire Cappadocia Turkey's First Desert Marathon". Skyline. Turkish Airlines. September 2012. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
4. Töre, Özgür (2012-02-22). "Upcoming Ultra-Marathons in Turkey will Challenge Elite Athletes". Focus on Travel News. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
5. "Turkey's 1st Desert Marathon kicks off". China Daily. 2012-07-09. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
6. "Elite Athletes to run at The Runfire Cappadocia". Istanbul Convention & Visitors Bureau. July 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-08-05. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
7. "Runfire Cappadocia Maratonu". TRT (in Turkish). 2012-07-09. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
8. "Rota" (in Turkish). Runfire Cappadocia. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
9. "Races 2013". International Association of Ultrarunners. Retrieved 2013-11-28.
10. "All-time results of this event: Run Fire Cappadocia Stage Race". Deutsche Ultramarathon. Retrieved 2013-11-28.

Gallery

• 
  Aerial view of Uçhisar
• 
  Valley of Pigeons
• 
  Ortahisar
• 
  Güzelyurt
• 
  Ihlara Valley
• 
  Mount Hasan
• 
  Lake Tuz
• 
  Çavuşin
• 
  Ürgüp
• 
  Göreme Valley