16/04/2006
Moroccan Lahcen Ahansal won his eighth consecutive Marathon des Sables Saturday (15 April) by finishing first in the last six stages. Jordan's Salameh Al Aqra finished second, while another Moroccan Moulay Abderrahmane Maliki was third. In the women's race, Frenchwoman Geraldine Courdèsse finished first, followed by Italians Lorina Dibito and Alicia Bertolino.
A similar ultra marathon started in Algeria since last Thursday (12 April). About 200 Algerian, French, Spanish, and German runners are partaking in Marathon Hoggar 2006. The distance of 168.5 km was split into five parts; respectively Peak Laperrine to Atakor region (35km), Tizouiag (31.7km), Mount Asskrem (8km), and Tihernanet (43.8km) to reach the finish in Tamanrasset (50 km). (MAP, APS, El Moudjahid)