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Run a virtual marathon relay with the NN Running Team

Anyone who enters NN Running's virtual marathon has the chance to be teamed up with Eliud Kipchoge, Kenenisa Bekele and other world record-holders

Very few runners will every get the chance to run with the likes of Eliud Kipchoge or Kenenisa Bekele—until now. Thanks to the NN Running Team, runners around the world will have unique opportunity to race with Kipchoge, Bekele and other NN Running Team members in a virtual marathon relay. The relay is set for June 6 and 7, and a few lucky teams will get a great surprise on race day: the chance to be teammates with these legends of the sport. What better motivation than getting the chance to run with a world record-holder?

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The team relay

The relay is called MA RA TH ON (a marathon split into four parts), and each member will run 10.5K. Runners can create their own team or request to be assigned to a team of three on the NN Running website. Registration is open until the end of the event, which closes on June 7 just before midnight, so runners who are late to the show can still form a team and run even in the final hours of the event. The race is recorded on Strava, and each team member has to post their best 10.5K time online to be officially included in the final rankings.

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The rules on the NN Running site say runners can post as many 10.5K workouts as they like in the two-day race period and their fastest time will automatically be used for their team’s result. It’s also suggested that runners don’t stop immediately at 10.5K. This way, everyone can be sure that their runs will count, because anything under 10.5K won’t be considered for an official time.

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Running with one of the GOATs

Everyone’s probably wondering how they can get teamed up with a member of the NN Running Team. It all comes down to luck, and the only way you can ensure that you have a shot is to sign up and create a team or be assigned to a squad. If you’re hoping to get an elite athlete as a teammate, your best bet is to probably sign up before the June 6 start date, because those runners will likely be assigned to teams as soon as the event starts.

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Your team could be joined by Kipchoge (first sub-two-hour marathoner in history), Bekele (Olympic champion), Geoffrey Kamworor (half-marathon world record-holder) or Joshua Cheptegei (5K world record-holder and 10,000m world champion).

If a team is joined by an elite runner, the five 10.5K times will be added together and the average pace will determine the 42K finishing time. This way, even though there’s an extra member, everyone’s time is still used. This is a free event, and anyone can enter here, so assemble your team and get ready for a quick time trial.

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