Frenchman in line for Mars mission

A DOCTOR from Bordeaux has been named among the 100 final candidates for an ambitious one-way trip to Mars 10 years from now.

Jeremy Saget, a 37-year-old GP, husband and father, beat off competition from more than 200,000 people from 140 countries who had applied for a place on the $6bn mission to set up a

permanent colony on the red planet.

The original applicants were whittled down to 660 last year. Mr Saget is the only French person on the current list of 50 men and 50 women. There are also five Britons among the 31 European

candidates, who line up alongside 39 from the Americas, 16 from Asia, seven from Africa and seven from Oceania.

Announcing the shortlist, Bas Lansdorp, co-founder and CEO of Dutch non-profit group Mars One, said: “The large cut in candidates is an important step towards finding out who has the right

stuff to go to Mars. These aspiring martians provide the world with a glimpse into who the modern day explorers will be.”

Mr Saget told the newspaper SudOuest that he and his would-be astronaut colleagues will now be tested to assess how well they work in groups under pressure before finding out at the end of

the year if he has made the final list of 24 chosen for the Mars One mission.

"It's been a pleasure. Now, there is much work to do," he told the newspaper, in which he also described himself as, "driven, committed, strong, open-minded, friendly and starry-eyed”.

He said: “I have long been convinced that my generation is destined to explore space. I am a husband and a loving father. But I do not deny what defines me. I'm not a believer but this type

of project requires a form of faith.”

The Dutch organisation behind the $6bn Mars One project hopes to part-fund the mission by filming the training and selection process for a reality TV show. An agreement was signed in June

last year with TV production company Endemol.