Robert F. Bukaty / AP

John Farra carries his 110-pound wife, Tess, over a 278-yard obstacle course to win the North American Wife Carrying Championship on Saturday at the Sunday River Ski Resort, in Newry, Maine.

updated 11:37 p.m. ET Oct. 7, 2006

NEWRY, Maine - A former Olympic cross-country skier has won the seventh annual North American Wife Carrying Championship in Maine.

John Farra says he trained by running up a ski slope with 80 pounds of mortar mix. The course includes a water trough and log hurdles.

His first-place finish earned him and his 110-pound wife her weight in beer and five times her weight in cash, or 550 dollars. They’re also eligible for a one-thousand-dollar reimbursement toward a trip to the world championships in Finland next July.

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