"We had a great day. Everything came together. The weather was perfect for running," said race director Sarah Fabbri. "Racers came from across the province including large numbers from Edmonton, Calgary and the Bow Valley."

"We are particularly pleased with the new partnership that we formed for this event," Fabbri added. "This year we joined forces with the Banff Skirunners. As co-organizers they brought great energy to Ekiden 2002. We will split the proceeds with them."

The racers ran legs that varied in length from 5.8 to 12.8 km, all along paved pathways and trails in Banff. In total, the 800 participants covered about 6,880 km, Fabbri pointed out. "That’s like running from Banff to St. John’s, Newfoundland."

An Ekiden is a long-distance relay race run on an ordinary road. The first Ekiden relay was run in 1917, on the 50^th anniversary of the transfer of Japan’s capital from the ancient city of Kyoto to Tokyo. That race covered a distance of 508 km, and was divided into 23 stages and lasted three days. Ekidens are still held in Japan and in other locations around the world.