The end is near

Now the bell for the last round has been rung. At 18:48 Bjørnar arrived at Jotka, to quickly sign in and take off again straight away. His average speed on the last stage was 10,8 km per hour and the dogs are now strongly pulling towards home. The estimated arrival time is still 22:30 but he might even be faster, so come and join us at the Strand camping in Alta to celebrate the winner of the Finnmarksløpet 2004. The distance he has to cover now is 44 km and the dogs showed no sign of exhaustion, said the checkpoint officials. So there is no indication that Bjørnar could have to put in a rest on the way back and this means that he looks like the winner. But as you know, a race only ends the moment the finish line is crossed. (Photo: Altaposten)