Deferment of the Snowman Race, inaugural event

The Snowman Race Secretariat would like to officially announce the deferment of the inaugural Snowman Race scheduled for 13^th October 2021 to 13^th October 2022. The inaugural race was originally scheduled coinciding with the Tenth Royal Wedding Anniversary. The Climate Action Summit is also being recommended to be deferred by the Royal Government of Bhutan.

This difficult decision was arrived at after due consultations with all stakeholders. At the moment, the health and welfare of the participants, as well as the local, national and international communities at large, are our highest priority. The followings are key reasons for the deferment:

• High degree of uncertainty due to COVID 19 pandemic
• Limited time at hand
• Difficulty in carrying out the preparatory works due to the COVID-19 related travel and other restrictions
• Risk on last-minute cancellation resulting in waste of budget
• Possible risks of not getting flight connections to Bhutan
• It may not be appropriate in view of the present COVID 19 situation

On the other hand, we believe this deferment will give us the opportunity to strategize on more activities and knowledge to achieve the motive of the race which is to support climate action and bring the global community together to combat climate change, one of the defining issues of our time, and its impacts, particularly on the lives of people living in fragile mountain ecosystems.

In order to keep the spirit and momentum of the Snowman Race, we are hoping to hold a day race for the women in Gasa, on the same date – October 13, 2021, coinciding with the 10th Royal Wedding Anniversary.

We would like to sincerely thank everyone’s support and interest. We look forward to the continued engagement. Wishing everyone good health and happiness. Please stay safe.