June 05, 2013 (Bennington, Vermont) – Olympic Day with Olympian Andy Newell, presented by The Bank of Bennington, is a celebration and international effort to promote fitness and well-being in addition to Olympic ideals of Fair Play, Perseverance, Respect and Sportsmanship.

When: June 23, 2013,  9-11:30 AM

Where: Willow Park – lower Pavilion

Event Details:
– Ages 15 and under
– Enjoy games and fun Olympic style events
– Create your own Olympic medals
– Photo signing with local Olympian Andy Newell
– Come any time between 9-11:30am

January 16, 2013 (Gatineau, QC) – In one month, from February 15th to 17th, 2013, the start of the Gatineau Loppet, the largest cross-country ski event in Canada, will be given. It’s in a festive spirit that the organizing committee unveiled today a few surprises for the 35th edition!

A Very Special Guest
The President of the Gatineau Loppet, Mr. Yan Michaud, said he was “extremely pleased to announce Tara Whitten as Honorary President of the event.” The 32-years-old athlete made her mark in cross-country skiing with her silver medal at the 2003 Under-23 World Championships, by winning the Gatineau Loppet’s 50 km freestyle in 2004 and also for competing as a member of Team Canada, in the 2005 Senior World Championships. In 2008, she exclusively devoted herself to cycling, where she was crowned Omnium World Champion on the track in 2010-2011 and also won the bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics in team pursuit. The young woman, native of Edmonton, is “delighted to reconnect with cross-country skiing for the 35th anniversary of the event.” She will participate in the 55 km classic on Saturday and also in the 10 km freestyle on Sunday: “Come and ski with me on February 16th and 17th, 2013 at the Gatineau Loppet!”.

New linear Courses
The Organizing Committee wishes to remind all skiers that for the 35th anniversary of the Gatineau Loppet, two new linear courses of 55 and 38 km classic starting from Philippe Lake will be inaugurated. Participants of these two races will have the opportunity to ski for the first time through the beautiful scenery of three municipalities; La Pêche, Chelsea and Gatineau.

Hall of Fame
As a legacy for the 35th anniversary of the Gatineau Loppet, the “Trail of Legends” Hall of Fame will be inaugurated. The organizing committee wishes to honor individuals or organizations that have marked the event or contributed significantly to the development of cross-country skiing. The first member of the “Gatineau Loppet Trail of Legends” will be presented during the Ice Worldoppet Cocktail hold February 16th at Mont Bleu High School.
For more information, visit our website at gatineauloppet.com.

November 02, 2011 – Triple Olympic gold medalist, Norway’s Vegard Ulvang, along with Jan-Gunnar Winther, Stein P. Aasheim and Harald Dag Jølle have finally sought out on the journey to the South Pole and skied the few first kilometers of their trek.

Delay
Due to have snowfall on the Union Glacier the expedition got delayed. The expedition had to stay at Punta Arenas, Chile longer than expected and got little bit inpatient. “Everything remains uncertain, but now they are talking about Monday as the next possible opportunity. Our patience is starting to wear very thin, even though we were fully cognizant of the risk that it might turn out like this,” they write on the website. Finally the expedition left Punta Arenas on October 28 and at 15:45 landed at Union Glacier. “The weather here is fantastic: –28°C and almost no wind at all,” the first words are on the expedition diary. “We are all thoroughly pleased to have snow under our feet and are keeping our fingers crossed for a speedy onward journey to the Bay of Whales.”

Bay of Whales
Two days later, on Sunday October 30 the expedition got the green light for the final move to Antarctica, to the Bay of Whales. Travel time – 7-8 hours.

Wikipedia depicts the Bay of Whales as a natural ice harbor, or iceport, indenting the front of Ross Ice Shelf just north of Roosevelt Island. It is the southernmost point of open ocean not only of the Ross Sea, but worldwide. The Ross Sea does extend much further south, but that area is covered by the Ross Ice Shelf.

“At long last we have arrived at the Bay of Whales. We flew for six hours with one stop to refuel, covering a distance roughly the length of Norway,” the expedition diary says. Vegard Ulvang, Jan-Gunnar Winther, Stein P. Aasheim and Harald Dag Jølle have made it to Antarctica and 1311 km skiing trip lied ahead of them.

Finally on the road
The quartet finally set out for the journey today, on November 1 in the morning. “We set out at 9 a.m. with the sun in the back and the wind in our faces. Finally, we’ve moved towards our target. Our routine is an hour’s walk. Short pause. And then the same thing over and over again,” the expedition diary says.

First day in Antarctica is over. The expedition made in five sessions 20 km. “A short day, but it is important to go in on such a trip. The body will get used to the load. Step by step, literally. So far, no pain anywhere,” the expedition says.

Follow the expedition daily!
You have the unique opportunity to follow the quest to the South Pole every day. Go HERE and then click on “Expedition Diary”. The updates are there every day in Norwegian and English! You can also follow the adventure on facebook HERE.