Psiloritis Race

The race trail covers the distance that pilgrims of the sacred city of Minoan Knossos used to walk in order to climb Psiloritis mountain and honor their god, Zeus Cretagenes, who according to Ancient Greek Mythology was brought up in the cave of Ideon Andron, worship center and sanctum during the Minoan and Roman times. Today, Psiloritis Race links the myth with contemporary history as the runners will follow the traces of their ancestors on the holy mountain of Zeus Cretagenes.

The race will start on the morning of June 3 on Nida plateau in Anogia Crete. The athletes of 35 km will reach the summit of Psiloritis (2.456). 

The idea of a mountain race in Crete, with high international standards, was first born in June 2008 on Mt Olympus. Our love for the mountain Psiloritis where Zeus brought up, the promotion of the natural beauty of the area finally transformed the idea into practice .Having the support of the people who love the island and enjoy running on the mountains, we organize this event which is called the "Psiloritis Race" (PR). The event is organized with the kind support of the prefecture of Rethymno.

The International Mountain Race "Psiloritis Race" is an athletic meeting that forwards physical activity in touch with the natural environment. The race offers the opportunity to experience the unique and exciting character of the mountain along with the opportunity for the participants to experience a unique vigorous seven-hour race. That is the reason why the athletes who will try out their strength in the PR should practice the philosophy of semi autonomy, carrying a least a necessary equipment that will provide them with security and sustenance during the race ; while there will be a systematical and in regular intervals supply. We created the PR site that will provide all the information for the race, as well as on the FaceBook, which is welcomed in ten days time by 11.100 friends around the world. The webpage of the reace has more than 269.000 visitors by now. For this well-organized and innovative event the response has far exceeded all the expectations of the organizing committee which aims to attract more and more athletes every year.