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THE SAHARA MARATHON One of the most amazing marathon races in the world is the Marathon of the Sands. It takes place every April in the Sahara Desert in the south of Morocco, a part of the world where temperatures can (1) ___be_____ fifty degrees centigrade. The standard length of a marathon is 42.5 kilometers but this one is 240 kilometers long and takes seven days to complete. It began in 1986 and now attracts about two hundred runners, the majority of (2) __their______ ages range from seventeen to forty-seven. About half of them come from France and the rest from all over the world. From Britain, it costs £2,500 to enter, which includes return airfares. The race is rapidly becoming more and more popular (3) __worlwide______, or perhaps because of, the harsh conditions that runners must endure. They have to carry food and anything else they need for seven days in a rucksack (4) ___of_____ no more than twelve kilograms. (5) ___Beside_____ this, they are given a liter and a half of water every ten kilometers. Incredibly, nearly all the runners finish the (6) __race______. One man, Ibrahim El Journal, took part in (7) ___the_____ race from 1986 to 2004. Runners (8) ___will_____ suffer terrible physical hardships. Sometimes they lose toenails and skin peels (9) ___off_____ their feet. However, doctors are always on hand to deal with minor injuries and to make sure that runners do not push (10) ___on_____ too far.