Depending on how you measure it (including its presence in Inner Mongolia or not), the Great Wall of China stretches between 6,400-6,700 kilometers.
Philippe Fuchs has just run over 27-32 percent a longer distance than the Great Wall of China.
Has it sunk in yet?
Let me put it another way. In just 24 weeks and 161 days, after having started his V+R Challenge run in Paris on March 7, Philippe Fuchs has worn out 10 pairs of running shoes and made it to Beijing after footing 8,500 kilometers across 2 continents and 7 countries. (Breath here)
Before getting to the congratulations bit, I can’t help but reflect about the V+R Challenge and the Great Wall of China.
A wall is at the same time a boundary and something to overcome or breach. The Great Wall of China was built to protect the Chinese Empire’s territory. It was a place to watch for the enemy and at times the scene of battle. At one point over a million men guarded it. It was also a passageway for those who earned the right, whether by birth, trade or combat, to enter China. Even today its mere presence instills awe, respect and a desire to conquer.
The V+R Challenge was in several ways a monumental boundary to overcome. For one, the idea of running from Paris to Beijing in 24 consecutive weeks is a pretty big blocking point for any athlete. Doing it means ‘running up against the wall’ day after day, having to overcome your joggling physical, mental and emotional conditions, as well as escaping unharmed from attacking dogs, nasty customs officers, icy snow and suffocating dessert heat. 8,500 kilometers.
The V+R Challenge is also the beginning of breaking through a scientific wall. Not Trojan Horse style, but the old fashioned way, step by step. In wall-breaking terms, the data gathered from Fuchs’ feet represents a warrior approaching the Great Wall and hacking out some stones with his axe. A lot more maneuvering is needed before breaking through. By breaking through I mean creating the world’s first scientifically valid virtual human foot, one that functions exactly as it would in the real world (with all 26 bones, 16 joints, 107 ligaments and 20 muscles).
Thanks to support generated for the charity Sports Without Borders through Philippe’s physical and your virtual kilometers run, the NGO is better armed to help international children overcome their own ‘walls’ through adapted therapeutic and rehabilitative sports programs.
So that they may progressively help more and more children surmount their difficulties, the France-headquartered NGO also hoped to overcome worldwide awareness ‘borders’ and boost international awareness necessary for fundraising. A relatively young NGO on the international scene, Sports Without Borders has made a global splash with the V+R Challenge. So far the V+R website has been visited by close to 150,000 Internet users from around the world (161 countries/territories to be exact). China, USA, Israel, France, and Morocco . . . Panama, Ukraine, Finland, Vietnam, Iran, Greece, Romania, India, Mexico . . .
(I’m happy to say that 3DSports has received visitors from 91 countries and territories.)
On a less serious but irresistible note, if you look at maps of the Great Wall of China like the one below, doesn’t it remind you of the V+R Challenge route?
I saved the best for last. Philippe Fuchs and the V+R Boys, Daniel Grassy and Bernard Robutel, as well as our intermittent V+R Gal, Anouk Garcia, literally surmounted the Great Wall of China! Here’s a victory photo taken by Anouk featuring from left to right Bernard, Philippe and Daniel. Look carefully, and you’ll see that they’re not doing the YMCA, they’re doing the WOW! Body language is powerful, eh?
Please join me in congratulating Philippe Fuchs and his cohorts in their accomplishment of a Great-Wall monumental feat!
–Kate
P.S. Now it’s okay to go ahead, pop open your champagne bottle and start-a-sippin!
P.P.S. This is not the end of the V+R Challenge. Stay tuned to 3DSports for more . . .
The event we’ve all been waiting for will occur tomorrow, but not exactly as we’d expected. Philippe Fuchs will arrive in Beijing around 1,500 kilometers shy of his 10,000 planned.
What happened?
Global warming hasn’t yet shrunk our planet. There are several legitimate reasons Philippe will clock in with more like 8,600 kilometers instead of 10,000. Cartography issues and injury are mostly to blame.
In order to prep for tomorrow’s big event, why not comprehend the ‘mystery’ now so you can fully enjoy the glory of the V+R Challenge’s accomplishment tomorrow? The best thing to do is get the full story from the man himself by viewing Episode 22 of Philippe’s TVnima journal.
–Kate
P.S. Many thanks to Richard Breitner who graciously manned 3DSports during my Griswold vacation!
Now, I owe it to myself to tell you, Mr. Griswold, that if you are thinking of taking the tribe cross country, this is your automobile. The Wagon Queen Family Truckster. You think you hate it now, but wait till you drive it.
–Ed in the National Lampoons 1983 film “Vacation”
Most everyone takes summer vacation (even the Griswolds), and now it’s my turn. In my absence I’m passing 3DSports over to Richard Breitner who I know will take good care of you.
In addition to being heavily involved in Dassault Systèmes’ Passion for Innovation program, Richard has a passion for fish and orchids. I can attest that on his desk, which is just three doors down from my office, Richard has three fish tanks including one pampered fish each, and three orchid plants including two babies and one adolescent.
Richard will keep you abreast of any Philippe Fuchs news, discuss with you should you wish to discuss, and might pop in a sports innovation/technology post in here and there. If you’d like to see what he looks like, watch his Virtual Relay (he’s #2 on the Hall of Fame).
I’ll be back mid-August to report on Philippe’s arrival in Beijing.
You’re reading this post so you’re probably at least a little geeked-out about the innovations and technologies driving the world of sports. And as a bonus for your interest, I’m going to give you some inside skinny on the below Digital Sports teaser. But please watch it first.
There are several references to Dassault Systèmes in the video. Insiders’ info #1: Mehdi Tayoubi (director of interactive strategy & marketing) is the person closing the VirtuSphere. I’ll sprinkle more insider tips throughout this post.
Here are some photos taken at the exposition’s opening that feature current and former French government officials . . . testing the Virtual Cardio™ Bike (even the ministères are into VR!):
I tried to indicate with Paint the names of the government representatives (see scribble in red; you may need to double click on the photo to see it well).
Photo factoids:
1. François d’Aubertis president of Cité des Sciences. Previously he was mayor of Laval, France and one of the founders of Laval Virtual, and he even once had a run as French ministère of research.
2. Eric Besson, among other government roles, is France’s secretary of state for digital economic development.
3. Fabrice Lourieruns the Cité des Science’s media center, and since the Cité is part of the governmental portfolio, I guess we can count Fabrice as a government rep.
Here’s a shot of François and Eric getting on the bikes.
And here they are in action.
If you go to the expo, you too can ride the Virtual Cardio™ Bike. But there are also interesting workshops, round-table discussions and special events planned for you. Some of the themes that interest me the most are:
• E-sports
• Handisports
• “From Pong to Today, 30 Years of Sports Simulation”
Parfait for 3DSports, non?
But back to the teaser. Remember the guy running inside the VirtuSphere? I run into him frequently at Dassault Systèmes, and he was even at the V+R Challenge kick-off event March 7. His name? Ray Latypov. His role? He’s the inventor of the VirtuSphere and one of our partners.
Last teaser factoid- but this one’s for YOU to answer! The digital runner is running in a digital environment. Remember the buildings? Now here’s the question: how are those buildings linked to Dassault Systèmes, and where are they “located?” (This is a trick question, so stay tuned to see who gets it right!)
Last week the Tour de France began, and through the end of July we’ll experience yellow-jersey-folly. This year marks the race’s 95th edition. How much has the sport evolved in a century?
Well, a lot!
Rather than focusing on cycling innovations that help competitors win, I’d rather talk about two peripheral points.
1. Being a Tour de France spectator has changed a lot, even in just the past few years. I was particularly pleased to see that this year’s official Tour website is quite V+R-esque. Just like you can find out in real time where in the world is Philippe Fuchs, you can catch Tour cyclist gaps in real time. So you don’t need to be on the actual sidelines or be at home glued to your television to keep track. You can stay at work and still follow! There are other cool functions to the official Tour website, notably the wealth of eyewitness videos, and GoogleMaps “StreetView” of the Tour.
2. Smart cycling clothing keeps you safe. Now there’s a new trick to add to your safety regime. In compliment to your bike helmet, you can “be the bike.” Why rely on arm signals or tiny flashing lights attached to your bike when you want to let others know you’re turning? You can wear the Turn Signal Jacket! (Thanks for the tip Jean!) Here’s a short video made by the inventor Leah Buechley that shows how it works:
As far as I can tell, you can’t buy this in a store—Leah generously provides instructions on how to build it yourself! Warning, you may need to exercise a little geekiness to accomplish the task.
The BBC-cited eyewitness says that on the streets, “There are 10 or 12 military tanks with what look like big cannons outside. There are no protesters now although there are rumours that they will do it again.”
Hopefully things will be calm for our V+R Challenge champion!
English
Franais
