The search for the world's supreme adventure racing team is underway with the creation of the Discovery Channel World Championship Adventure Race, announced today by leading global real world entertainment programmer Discovery Communications, Inc., and premier international adventure racing management company Southern Traverse Ltd.

As the first-ever international World Championship adventure racing event, the Discovery Channel World Championship Adventure Race will dramatically enhance adventure racing's global profile and help to unify the sport, which has exploded in popularity around the world. A new adventure race series, consisting of established international race events, has also been created to provide a qualifying platform for the World Championships.

The Discovery Channel World Championship Adventure Race will be held in September 2001 in Europe (exact location to be announced March 1). Striving to provide the very pinnacle of adventure racing experience in the world, the race will run continuously for six days and will include disciplines such as rafting, mountain biking, abseiling and glacier trekking. The prize purse for the World Championships will be $100,000 (US), with the race's winners claiming the title of the Discovery Channel World Champion Adventure Racing team.

The Discovery Channel World Championship Adventure Race will be managed and directed by Southern Traverse Ltd. Directors Geoff Hunt and Pascale Lorre have managed the Southern Traverse, New Zealand's icon event and one of the world's most respected adventure races, for 10 years. Discovery Channel will film the World Championship for a four-hour television miniseries, to be exclusively broadcast to the network's global audience in 152 countries worldwide.

Discovery Channel and Southern Traverse Ltd. entered into a partnership arrangement in 2000, with Discovery providing exclusive media coverage of the prestigious Southern Traverse Adventure Race, renamed the Discovery Channel Adventure Race — A Southern Traverse Partnership. A four-hour miniseries chronicling the November 2000 race will air on the Discovery Channel April 22-23, 2001.

Discovery Channel US Executive Vice President and General Manager Mike Quattrone says: "We see today's announcement as a major step forward in the recognition and promotion of adventure racing worldwide, and we are very pleased to provide a single uniting platform for the world's premier adventure racers. Southern Traverse Ltd., and specifically Hunt and Lorre, enjoy respect around the world for their challenging race courses, and their genuine caring for the sport and its athletes. With their 10-plus years' experience managing and directing a world-class race, we are honored to partner with them on this endeavor."

Southern Traverse's Lorre and Hunt say they are extremely excited to continue their relationship with Discovery Channel. Says Lorre: "Discovery Channel's expertise in filming and promoting these types of events is unsurpassed; they are the true innovators of adventure race programming, and the exposure and recognition gained from their media sponsorship will be unparalleled."

To support and provide a qualifying platform for the Discovery Channel World Championship Adventure Race, the AR World Series (adventure racing World Series) has been created. With the participation of seven recognized international adventure race events, this is the first series to unite elite, established adventure races around the world, and create a solid foundation of events throughout the calendar year.

AR World Series events to date include: Adrenalin Rush* (United Kingdom/Ireland); The Beast of the East (USA); Expedicao Mata Atlantica (EMA) (Brazil); Hi-Tec Adventure Quest (Africa); NOC Merciless Mountain Melee (USA); Raid The North Extreme (Canada); and the Southern Traverse (New Zealand). Discovery Channel will be the exclusive media sponsor of the series.

Each winning team from the respective AR World Series races will gain automatic, paid entry into the Discovery Channel World Championship Adventure Race, and a $5,000 (US) cash prize from Discovery Channel. In addition, invitations to the Championship will be extended to second-place teams in the AR World Series, and to winners of other recognized worldwide adventure races. To complete a full field of 50 four-person teams, registration will also be open to experienced teams who meet specified qualifying criteria. Registration is open as of today.

Hunt and Lorre say the international qualifying AR World Series will give true meaning and authenticity to the title of the Discovery Channel World Champion Adventure Racing team. Said Hunt: "This alliance of high caliber, pioneering races is the first of its kind in the world, and will provide much needed unity in the adventure racing world, bringing a new level of professionalism to the sport. We can now work together for the betterment of the sport in general."

Canadian Race Director Dave Zietsma of Raid the North Extreme says his organization is thrilled to be working together with respected race organizers from around the world, and sharing a unified passion for the development of adventure racing.

"Discovery Channel is largely responsible for making adventure racing a truly global sport, and there is no better media partner for the AR World Series," said Zietsma. "By working together, we can continue to grow the sport of adventure racing in the right direction for competitors."

Leading adventure racers from around the world have reacted with enthusiasm for the new initiative. Ian Adamson, winner of the Southern Traverse, Raid Gauloises, Eco-Challenge, and many others, believes the push to organize the Discovery Channel World Championship Adventure Race and the international adventure racing circuit comes at an important time in the evolution of the sport.

Said Adamson: "The current sorry state of affairs on the international racing circuit has five major events taking place within a month of each other, a situation that reflects poorly on race directors and the sport in general. The impetus to bring the major international events to an agreement and to provide structure to the calendar of events will alleviate this problem, enhance the appeal of adventure racing, allow athletes to attend races at their discretion, and give credence to a bona fide World Championship."

Discovery Channel is one of the world's largest cable television networks, serving more than 185 million subscribers in 152 countries across the globe with the finest in informative entertainment. Constantly redefining the boundaries of real world entertainment with ground breaking expeditions, global programming events and innovative storytelling from the world's most talented film makers, the Discovery Channel presents the highest quality programming spanning science and technology, nature, history, human adventure and world culture genres.

Southern Traverse Ltd. is a premier international sport event management company. Southern Traverse Ltd. operates and manages elite events around the world, including the Discovery Channel World Championship Adventure Race, the World Championship Adventure Racing Series, and New Zealand's icon adventure race, the Southern Traverse.

For more information email Southern Traverse at traverse@queenstown.co.nz.