Son unseats father to win Alaska's Iditarod dog sled race

Dallas Seavey early Tuesday morning won his second Iditarod sled-dog race in three years, unseating his father, Mitch, as defending champion while breaking the race's three-year-old record.

The 26-year-old Seavey and his canine team finished the 42nd annual, 1,000-mile race (1,600 km) through the Alaskan tundra and into the coastal community of Nome in 8 days, 13 hours, 4 minutes and 19 seconds.

High winds whirled snow over the final stretch of the race, compelling leader and four-time champion Jeff King to drop out just 25 miles (40 km) from the finish line of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

The punishing round-the-clock marathon commemorates a rescue mission that carried diphtheria serum by sled-dog relay to Nome in 1925. While most competitors are from Alaska, the race has drawn entrants from as far away as Norway, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Sweden and Jamaica.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.