More Than 40,000 Spartans Complete Project Unbreakable, the World's Largest Virtual Race
Spartan hosted the biggest event in its history this past weekend. As part of Project Unbreakable: The World's Largest Virtual Race, more than 40,000 athletes in more than 100 countries crossed the virtual finish line.
The event unfolded in the homes, backyards, and neighborhoods of athletes on six continents, from the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East to Africa, Asia, and Australia. The athletes, ranging from weekend warriors to pros, tackled virtual editions of Spartan’s four signature obstacle course races: the 5K, 20-obstacle Spartan Sprint; the 10K, 25-obstacle Spartan Super; the half-marathon, 30-obstacle Spartan Beast; and the 50K, 60-obstacle Spartan Ultra. Spartan Kids races, for kids ages 4-14, were also offered, ranging from half-mile to 2-mile distances.
Created for indoor or outdoor completion, athletes hit the virtual course for a total of 65,802 hours, covering 231,488 miles by running (or through a provided alternative, such as stationary bikes and rowing machines). The obstacles were made up of a series of bodyweight and aerobic exercises, such as push-ups, mountain climbers, bear crawls, jump rope, stair climbs, and more.
The success of the event was underscored by the use of Spartan’s virtual race hashtags on social media. There were more than 35,000 posts about the event throughout the weekend, and the hashtag #SpartanProjectUnbreakable was used 17,000 times alone. All participants earned a global leaderboard spot and a virtual medal.
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The brand partnered with World OCR, also known as the Fédération Internationale de Sports d’Obstacles (FISO) — which has member federations in 129 countries — to reach athletes around the world and help them stay fit and healthy.
Project Unbreakable is Spartan’s latest effort to keep its community connected and healthy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to the event, Spartan saw close to 20,000 entries in weekly virtual races, which began in April.