After years of planning and gaining the right approvals, Ultra168 can exclusively launch today, the revived Ultra168 Sydney to Melbourne ultra marathon.

Once a classic in the 80s with the likes of Cliff Young lining up, this flagship race is set to be revived, with a race date of Saturday 7th September. Strictly limited to 50 places, there’s already been interest from a whole host of elite Aussie and international runners. This includes a former world champion marathon runner, an Aussie record holder and an Australia ultra runner of the year.

The race will begin at the iconic Sydney Opera House, where ladies champion marathon runner, Paula Radcliffe will set off proceedings. Runners will make their way along the Hume Highway through country NSW and Victoria, before finishing at Federation Square in Melbourne.

Runners will be required to have a crew follow them the entire journey, with no stipulations as to how much rest they can take. It’s simply a race to the finish along the official course, the rest is up to the runners to work out!

But wait… there’s more. While there will be an official road race taking place, theres also the option for trail runners to take the ‘bush’ route via the AAWT. We’ve linked up a whole series of trails (with some road unfortunately), to allow those who prefer to take part in an eating competition, the opportunity to make their way between our two largest cities.

While the road race is expected to take 5-6 days for the elite runners, the bush route could be anything up to 40 days for those hardy souls. What’s more, runners can choose to do the bush route with or without support.

For those who’d like to express their interest in either of the races email us at: AprilFools@ultra168.com

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Dan

I'm a mediocre runner who can bat above his average when I train hard. A man of extremes, I do enjoy everything life offers and consider it an absolute pleasure just to be able to put one foot in front of the other and let my mind wander somewhere different.