This year's marathon will feature 54 runners from more than 30 countries, including the US, China, India, Australia, UK, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Canada, Ukraine, Norway, Austria, Denmark, Hong Kong, New Zealand, and Romania.
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Nepali-American runner Bal Joshi is set to participate in the 'World Marathon Challenge', which will be held for seven consecutive days across seven continents.
Joshi is the only Nepali to participate in the seven-day 'World Marathon Challenge' starting from Antarctica on January 31, 2026 and ending in Miami, USA on February 6.
Joshi will run 294 km in seven days in a series of seven full marathons of 26.2 miles (42.19 kilometers). He will run in Nepali costume. Joshi is the first to run in Nepali costume in this marathon, which started in 2015.
54 runners from more than 30 countries including the US, China, India, Australia, UK, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Canada, Ukraine, Norway, Austria, Denmark, Hong Kong, New Zealand, and Romania will participate in this marathon.
All the runners will reach Cape Town, Africa on January 28 to participate in the World Marathon Challenge. The organizers will fly them to Antarctica on a chartered flight on January 30.
The marathon, which will start from Antarctica on January 31, will be held in Cape Town, Africa on the second day on February 1. Similarly, the third marathon will be held in Perth, Australia on February 2, the fourth marathon in Dubai, Asia on February 3, the fifth marathon in Madrid, Spain on February 4, the sixth marathon in Brazil on February 5, and the seventh and final marathon will be held in Miami, America on February 6. 
The runners will run from minus 20 degrees Celsius in Antarctica to 25 degrees Celsius in Dubai. The temperature in Madrid will be 5 degrees Celsius.
There is no hotel arrangement for the rest and accommodation of the marathon participants. After running a marathon on one continent, the runner will have to be ready for another marathon. The organizers will take the runners to another continent from there via a special plane chartered by the organizer.
Joshi, who started running to stay healthy, has been running for social work and human welfare since 2021. Joshi, who has participated in more than two dozen marathons in different countries around the world, has donated more than $200,000 from sponsors in the past four years to support children's education, health, sports, and food for senior citizens in Nepal, America, and Africa through the One Step Foundation.
Joshi, 41, who was born in Surkhet, has been in the United States for two decades. Joshi, who lives in Grapevine City in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, Texas, is a banker by profession.
Joshi, who runs in Nepali attire carrying the flags of Nepal and the United States, has taken this marathon as an opportunity to promote Nepali heritage and Nepal.
After participating in more than two dozen marathons around the world, he said that he decided to participate in this marathon, which is considered to be very challenging. ‘Moreover, this seemed like a good opportunity to promote Nepali costumes and heritage in a few days,’ he said, ‘that is why I am participating in this marathon.’
