In 2014 the For Preservation of Clean Water Baikal Ice Marathon celebrates its 10th anniversary. This one-of-a-kind ice marathon has seen competitors from over 50 different countries race across the frozen surface of Lake Baikal in south-east Siberia. The Baikal Ice Marathon is renowned as one of the world’s most unique endurance challenges, having attracted hundreds of daring runners to its shore for a decade.


Held as part of the Baikal International Winter Games Festival in 2014, under support of the Agency for Tourism of the Government of Irkutsk Region, the 2014 jubilee edition of the Baikal Ice Marathon will take place on March 1. Adventure Travel Company 56th Parallel is offering winter tour packages to get you to the starting line in March 2014.

Registration for this elite global marathon closes on December 1, 2013.

Here are some things you may not know about the marathon’s icy racecourse, Lake Baikal, and its stunning untouched shores:

Located 65 kilometres from Irkutsk, Lake Baikal is the largest and deepest lake in the world, comprising of 20% of the world’s natural freshwater resources.

Baikal is estimated to have been formed over 20-25 million years ago. It contains up to 90% of Russia’s drinking water and is recognised as the deepest lake in the world, reaching depths of up to 1700 metres. This natural marvel carves through Siberia towards the Mongolian border, spanning across 600 kilometres making it the seventh largest lake in the world.

The lake is a UNESCO protected site and considered a biological mecca, referred to as the ‘Galapagos of Russia’ due to its rich and unusual forms of freshwater fauna and flora. The landscape surrounding the basin has attracted visitors for decades due to its picturesque mountains, boreal forests and taiga woods.

The Baikal Ice Marathon ‘For Preservation of Clean Water’ gives competitors the unique opportunity to race across a 42 kilometres plotted course on the oldest and deepest freshwater lake in the world.


Proving to be one of the world’s ten most challenging endurance marathons, the course of the race is predominantly flat and covered in a light layer of snow. Though the lake’s surface can be uneven at times, with occasional patches, it mostly resembles the conditions of an ice skating rink. Small hills and icy rubble are common on the frozen surface of Lake Baikal, creating a completely unique racetrack crafted for the world’s most adventurous marathon runners.

Visitors to Siberia will find the northerly winds a harsh and unpredictable aspect of the Siberian climate which adds to the race’s already big challenge. The marathon has seen conditions varying in severity, from high winds and a signature Siberian winter temperature to sunny skies with almost no chill factor at all.


Running across a frozen lake may sound enchanting but it comes with a few risks, carefully monitored by an experienced Siberian support team. A huge amount of preparation and safety precautions are taken prior to the annual event. The Baikal Ice Marathon ‘Ice captain’ and an assembled support team plot a safe racecourse using consistent monitoring through satellite images, assessing the risk of small cracks that can form on the frozen surface of Lake Baikal.

By the day of the race you’re in safe hands - there are six food and drinks stations plotted throughout the race’s 42 kilometre stretch, as well as service teams and hovercrafts scattered across the course.


On March 1 competitors are ferried from the local town of Listvyanka to Tankhoy train station on the opposite shore of Lake Baikal. It is here that runners assemble at the starting line and partake in vodka sprinkling, a Siberian ritual in which competitors pacify the spirits of the Great Baikal.

The 10th anniversary of the For Preservation of Clean Water Baikal Ice Marathon is proving to be the events biggest yet, with competitors across the world registering to compete in the annual race across two banks of the frozen Lake Baikal.


For enquiries, registration and special packages, including cultural tours of Irkutsk, Listvyanka and winter sports in the taiga woods, contact 56th Parallel:

PHONE: +61-2-8221-88-59
EMAIL: [email protected]
WEBSITE: http://www.56thparallel.com