Val Cenis Lanslebourg, The Haute-Maurienne Vanoise region of France has hosted the opening ceremony of “The Trophée La Grande Odyssée.” The race kicks off Saturday afternoon where mushers will race across the 220km long trail. An emotional ceremony took place on Friday evening in Lanslebourg to officially kick off this race and to introduce each and every musher. “I am here as the ambassador of my country and to better appreciate this new type of race” declared the Czech musher Havrda Radek. Emil Inauen, one of the favorites, declared he thinks he will beat some of the mushers…A spectacular fireworks display closed the ceremony.Harvda Radek will start in first position on Saturday afternoon and will go through the village of Lanslebourg, which has been specially prepared with fresh snow for the race. The arrival will take place at the Mont Cenis pass where a Polar Base has been specially built by the 13 BCA, the local Alpin military troops. The mushers will spend the night at 2000m of altitude in without assistance.Everybody is now impatient to start competing, and thousands of people are expected on Saturday and Sunday in the Haute-Maurienne/Vanoise area to see the mushers embark on their 220 mile journey. This year, you will get the opportunity to track and trace the progress of each and every musher thanks to the GPS tracking system used by the La Grande Odyssée committee. Visit www.grandeodyssee.com for more imformationThe schedule of of the La Grande OdysséeSaturday 13-January-200711 :00 Press Conference16 :30 Start: Lanslebourg Termignon19 :00 Stage finish: Polar BaseSunday 14-January-200711 :30 Leaving Polar Base Lake of Mont-Cenis – Mont-Cenis Pass Polar Base16 :00 Stage finish: LanslevillardMonday 15-Janvier-200711 :30 Leaving Bessans : Mass Start12 :10 Bonneval sur Arc14 :00 Termignon16 :00 Stage finish: Lanslebourg18 :00 Final Results
