Runners from 15 countries take Alps 2 Ocean Ultra's 130 slots

New Zealand's first ultra-staged run has already sold out.

The Alps 2 Ocean Ultra's 130 places have been taken by competitors from 15 countries and entries are now being taken entries for the 2019 event.

Next year's event begins at the base of Mt Cook on February 23. It will involve the runners crossing 316km to Oamaru, a distance expected to take 12 days.

The route follows the off-road Alps 2 Ocean cycle trail for much of the race.

Entries for the inaugural event are evenly split between male and female runners and supported and unsupported runners, with 84 coming from overseas.

Race director Mike Sandri said the response had been amazing.

The idea to create the event came when he was been running an ultra-marathon in the United States.

He had been asked often during that race why New Zealand did not have an ultra-marathon, as it seemed made for it.

''It got me thinking and I thought, 'yes, why not have an ultra-run here and the perfect place is Mt Cook to Oamaru, so let's have a go and see what happens','' Sandri said.

''We are definitely off to a pretty good start.

''To truly do something you haven't done before like this can be pretty daunting while also being so inspirational and motivating.

''I also want to show off New Zealand and raise some money for youth in our community.''

An ultra-marathon is defined as anything further than the standard 42km marathon.

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