The International Silk Road Iran Ultra Marathon sports tourism events began in 2016 in cooperation with the World Running Academy Company with the aim of developing sustainable tourism from the village of Shafi Abad, Shahdad, and was held by covering 250 kilometers in 7 days deep in the depths of the Lut Desert. This event, as well as similar events such as the Night Marathon and the Lut Desert Trail, have been held 9 times so far and have been registered in the country’s sports tourism events calendar. After the start of this event and with the global registration of the Lut Desert, the number of eco-lodges and the cooperation of the local community in the village of Shafi Abad in the field of tourism has developed significantly, and now more than 50 percent of the people of Shafi Abad have an economic income through this means.
