The final race roster is set for the 11th annual Yukon River Quest, which will begin on June 24 in Whitehorse.

This year's field will feature 82 teams with 179 paddlers from all over the world, including several past champions, in what should be a competitive event.

The Yukon River Quest is the longest annual canoe and kayak race in the world. Except for two mandatory rest stops totaling 10 hours, paddlers race non-stop over approximately 740 kilometers (460 miles) to Dawson City. Held annually during the last week of June (around the summer solstice), it is a true ‘Race to the Midnight Sun'.

The YRQ is widely recognized now as one of the toughest ultra marathon paddling events on the planet, where the world's best paddlers gather to compete.

A segment on the 2008 race will be featured on NBC-TV's Jeep World of Adventure Sports on June 6. It is scheduled to air from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific Time.

For the 2009 event, teams will compete for a record $36,000 in prize money in various categories, but most do the race for the personal satisfaction of staking his/her claim to a coveted finisher pin.

The YRQ has grown in popularity since its Gold Rush centennial beginnings over a decade ago. This year's field is down slightly from record participation in 2008.

"We are very pleased to see that the number of teams this year (82) is very close to last year's number (89), even in this economic situation," said Jean-Francois Latour, president of the Yukon River Marathon Paddlers Association, in a press release.

Eight countries will be represented this year. Coming from outside North America are paddlers from Australia, Austria, Great Britain, Japan, Latvia, the Netherlands, and the United Arab Emirates. The U.S. will be represented with paddlers from Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Montana, Oregon, Texas, and Washington. Finally, Canada will have teams from Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Northwest Territories, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, and the Yukon, which has 28 paddlers in the race.

The 2009 YRQ will have stiff competition in most categories:

Solo canoe: three teams including 2008 champion Kevin Mellis of Calgary.

Solo kayak: 20 men, four women, including 2008 champion and record holder Brad Pennington of Texas (featured in NBC program), and past champions and record holders Carter Johnson and David Kelly of California, as well as multi-year women's champion Ingrid Wilcox of Whitehorse.

Tandem canoe: 16 men's teams, nine mixed, four women's. Watch out for the mixed team of Tim Hodgson (from the course record setting 2008 Kisseynew voyageur team) and overall canoe runner-up and former Canadian Olympic cross-country skier Jane Vincent of Whitehorse. And then there's the race's perennial threat, Larry Seethaler of Anchorage, Alaska, back for the 13th time (all 11 YRQs and both Dyea to Dawson races) paddling with partner Brenda Forsythe.

The women's field features some stellar teams: past champions Veronica Wisniewski of Washington and Elizabeth Bosely of Whitehorse paddling together for the first time; record holder Pauline Frost-Hanberg of Whitehorse paddling with Laragh Taylor from Marsh Lake; and the up-and-coming Yukon team of Joanie Pelletier and Kari Johnston. The men's canoe race could be wide open, but watch for the YRQ-savvy team of Terry Ramin and Derek Crook from B.C.

Tandem kayak: 10 men's teams, three mixed teams, four women's teams. There are no past champions, but a highly international mix should make the K2 class fun to watch. Watch out for Dawson City's Steve Geick and Janice Rose, and the veteran Alaskan team of Jan Nyboer and Greg Tibbetts.

Voyageur canoe: Six in the open class (including one mixed team that switched to open), and three women's teams.

The Texans (2007 champs) are back to try to reclaim the overall crown which they lost last year to the combined Canadian Team Kisseynew. The Texans are stacked with Texas Water Safaris veterans and are bringing a new boat, but they should face a stiff challenge from last year's third place Team Dene from Hatchet Lake, Sask., which has added past tandem canoe champions Norbert Wolverine and Lionel Campbell and will be in last year's

winning boat.

A British team of paddlers with experience in the prestigious Devizes to Westminister Marathon on the Thames also could be in the running, as well as an Alaskan team.Three veteran women's teams are back: Paddlers Abreast from Whitehorse, and multi-provincial Canadian teams Whoa and Yukon Yahoo.

Combined with the predicted high water levels of the river, Yukon River Marathon Paddlers Association anticipate a challenge to the course record of 39 hours, 32 minutes and 43 seconds, Latour said, adding that the start has moved off Main Street this year, to Rotary Peace Park, making it a shorter run for paddlers.

Complete team bios are online at www.yukonriverquest.com and will appear in a special Whitehorse Star race supplement on June 22.