Former reality TV star Jessie Holmes repeats as Iditarod champ

"Zeus led every single run except one. I just wanted to let someone else have some fun. And Polar deserves it more than anybody. He leads by example. This statement reflects Holmes' appreciation for his lead dogs' contributions to the victory, highlighting the collaborative nature of sled dog racing and the individual personalities and strengths of the animals."

"That's hard to put that on yourself because you got to live with that pressure every day. And if I do not make it, it is going to absolutely crush me. Holmes expressed the psychological weight of attempting to win consecutive Iditarods, demonstrating the intense personal stakes and emotional investment required to compete at the highest level of this demanding endurance race."

"Holmes, a former cast member on the National Geographic reality show "Life Below Zero," is the third competitor in the 54-year history of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race to repeat the year after winning for the first time. The others were Susan Butcher in 1986-87 and Lance Mackey in 2007-08. Both went on to win four titles. This establishes Holmes' achievement within historical context, showing he joins an elite group of back-to-back Iditarod winners."

Jessie Holmes, a former cast member of the National Geographic show "Life Below Zero," won the 2024 Iditarod, the approximately 1,000-mile sled dog race across Alaska. He crossed the finish line in Nome on Tuesday night with his team of 12 dogs, earning about $80,000 for the victory. Holmes is only the third competitor in the race's 54-year history to win consecutive years, joining Susan Butcher and Lance Mackey, both of whom went on to win four titles total. The race began March 8 in Willow and covered challenging terrain including two mountain ranges, the frozen Yukon River, and the unpredictable Bering Sea ice. Holmes had expressed that this year's race was the most important of his career.

Read at ESPN.com