Virtual sports company Raramuri is hosting the first ever Metaverse Marathon, where runners can earn digital rewards for running actual miles.
The in-browser event will take place on June 2, this year's Global Running Day, with early bird registration currently open to the public.
Participants registered for the 500-person race will see their real-life 26,2-mile run tracked using their cell phones or watches; this race data will correspond to an avatar progressing through the Raramuri virtual course.
“With physical marathons, there are so many logistical boxes to check, and that is not accessible to many people,” Raramuri CTO Nam Do told CoinDesk in an interview. “Bringing together people from all over the world, who can compete in their hometowns, connected by our journey, we think is something very special.”
Spectators can line up on the course track and support their favorite racers by giving them a thumbs up or sending NFTs to their wallet as they race.
Runners will experience a buzz on their phone when they pass a competitor and will be encouraged to dress up their avatars to make the race more theatrical.
The project's backend is built on the KardiaChain blockchain, in what the company is calling its first run-to-earn event.
Runners who complete the marathon will be rewarded with a digital asset to commemorate their experience, which will include their race time and provide early access to future marathon tickets.
Raramuri has been incubated by investor GameFi Iron Sale, a project dedicated to powering the KardiaChain ecosystem, since 2020.
This isn't the first time we've seen a "run to win" concept take shape in the Web 3 space.
Genopets raised €83 million to develop its Solana-based “move to win” NFT game in October, with a similar project called STEPN raising €5 million in early January.