Get muddy! Mud Day in Israel

Thousands of Israelis and foreigners got filthy and battled through miles of obstacles to take part in the country's first "Mud Day" race. The Mud Day is an internationally-held sporting event produced by the same leading French sports organization well-known for its other top events - Le Tour de France and the Dakar Rally.

In Israel's Mediterranean coastal city of Tel Aviv, participants plow through masses of mud. As the organizer put it, there will be "no fine chocolate on the menu, but a deliciously thick mud and especially the immense pride to cross the finish line alone or with your team."

The 22 military-inspired handicaps are built up of basins filled with water, ice water, and- mud, of course. Contestants then have to crawl under wires and climb walls - a slippery adventure.

With over 200,000 participants, who call themselves "mudguys" and "mudgirls", the muddy festival enjoys great popularity.

The challenge requires physical strength, endurance and mental abilities - and teamwork is a must in order to complete it. Israel’s Mud Day also includes an amateur track of half the distance - 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) and 11 obstacles.

At the end of the event, men and women caked in mud collapse in the late morning sun. Most of the participants sign up as a team and push each other to the finish line, since some obstacles are almost impossible to clear alone. A party in the specially-made village awaits them with music, beer and food afterwards.

Already more than 150,000 contestants in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Great Britain and Spain have participated in Mud Day. The latest dirt-filled festival was held in Merignac, in southwestern France. Other similar festivals are the "Tough Mudder" in Scotland or the "Muddy Race" in England. This mudguy landed face-down in the slop in Klettwitz, Germany.