Billionaire Offers Control Over Company for Photos of the Edge of the Earth: Conditions of the Challenge.

According to ТСН: Billionaire Tim Boyle, the director of Columbia Sportswear, has announced an unusual contest: anyone who can present a "true edge of the Earth" will gain control of the company. This initiative has become the centerpiece of a new marketing campaign for the brand called "The Impossible Expedition."

In a video clip, the 76-year-old businessman invites supporters of the flat Earth theory to send photos of the place they believe the planet ends. He emphasized that the winner will receive "everything from offices to coffee makers" and promised no legal difficulties. Columbia's estimated value is around 3 billion dollars.

However, the advertisement also features a man who identifies as Boyle's lawyer and showcases the "fine print": Columbia actually founded "The Company, LLC" with capital of about 100 thousand dollars. Thus, the prize exists, but it is significantly smaller than that of the large company founded in 1938.

Contest Conditions

The company clarified the participation conditions: participants must provide a photo with a "visible physical edge of the Earth" — a vertical cliff, abyss, or a clear edge. Ordinary dead ends or creative "bypass options," such as a friend nicknamed Edge, will not be accepted.

Humanity has had scientific facts about the spherical nature of the Earth for over two thousand years, confirmed by the shape of the Earth's shadow during eclipses and images from space, including from the SpaceX Fram2 mission, which recently showed a clear curvature of the planet. Nevertheless, some supporters of the flat Earth theory continue to deny this data, considering it part of a conspiracy.

Public Reaction

Physicist Ian Whittaker from Nottingham Trent University explains that it seems to us the horizon is straight because we view it from ground level. Curvature can only be noticed from a great height — similar to how a microbe on a basketball cannot recognize its curvature.

Despite scientists' skepticism, the online reaction to Columbia's campaign is quite active. Some users joke about the "ruins of flat earthers," while others are outraged and accuse space agencies of faking images.

In conclusion, Boyle addressed everyone intending to search for the edge of the planet:

"Hey, flat earthers, do me a favor. If you are going to the edge of the Earth, wear Columbia clothes. You will need them. Good luck!"

This contest attracts the attention of not only commentators and social media users but also scientists. It contains an intriguing blend of contemporary commerce and well-known disputes around scientific facts. And although the prospect of 'finding the edge of the Earth' seems meager from a scientific point of view, Boyle's initiative has undoubtedly sparked active discussion and re-evaluation of known facts about our planet.