Marathon Gold Corporation (TSX: MOZ) is pleased to provide assay results on the final twenty-six in-fill drill holes completed during 2022 at the Berry Deposit, part of the Valentine Gold Project located in central Newfoundland.

During 2022, Marathon completed 21,039 metres of diamond drilling at Berry targeting areas that are assumed in the Berry geological model to be composed primarily of un-mineralized waste but are within the conceptual pit shells used in the MRE. Success with this program has the potential to add mineable ounces to the Project’s mine plan. Assays from 15,301 metres of the 2022 drilling were previously reported (news releases dated June 15, September 12, 2022, and January 12, 2023). These latest results represent fire assay data from the final 5,738 metres of drilling and include results from two previously drilled holes that were re-opened and extended as part of the 2022 program. Highlights include:

• VL-20-882 EXT intersected 1.96 g/t Au over 26 metres including 25.79 g/t Au over 1 metre, and 5.96 g/t Au over 8 metres including 22.89 g/t Au over 2 metres, and 1.59 g/t Au over 13 metres including 10.93 g/t Au over 1 metre;
• VL-22-1274 intersected 1.88 g/t Au over 20 metres including 14.23 g/t Au over 1 metre, and 0.96 g/t Au over 36 metres, and 1.29 g/t Au over 16 metres including 12.77 g/t Au over 1 metre; and
• VL-22-1262 intersected 30.03 g/t Au over 1 metre and 13.36 g/t Au over 1 metre.

All quoted intersections comprise uncut gold assays in core lengths. All significant assay intervals are reported in Table 1.

Figure 1: The Berry Deposit (View South), with drill holes completed during 2022 after the cut-off for the 2022 MRE. “Significant” intercepts (averaging >0.70 g/t Au) are shown in red (previously disclosed) or purple (today’s release). All visible intercepts occur outside the Quartz-Tourmaline-Pyrite-Vein mineralized domain (shown in yellow) and are predominantly outside the 2022 MRE.

Matt Manson, President and CEO, commented: “With this final batch of 2022 Berry drill results, we continue to see intercepts of high-grade mineralization outside of Berry’s currently modeled mineralized domains. As a reminder, this in-fill program was designed to target areas of the deposit assessed to comprise primarily un-mineralized waste rock. As with our previous batch of results, we are delineating a sizeable domain of quartz-tourmaline-pyrite veining at the base of the mineral resource pit shell. In this case, it is at the northeastern limit of the deposit and represents the deeper extension of one of three northeast plunging ore shoots. This area was targeted with an extension of the 2020 diamond drill hole VL-20-882, and is illustrated in long-section in Figure 4 and cross-section in Figures 5 and 6. The 2022 in-fill drilling at Berry has been very successful in delivering new areas of mineralization, and supports our assessment that additional mineable ounces remain to be delineated within the scope of the Project’s current mine plan.”

Gold Mineralization at the Valentine Gold Project

Gold mineralization at the Valentine Gold Project is contained in Quartz-Tourmaline-Pyrite-Gold veins developed within granitoid rocks of the Valentine Lake Intrusive Suite on the hanging wall, or northwest, side of the Valentine Lake Shear Zone (“VLSZ”; Figure 2). Up to four orientations of veins have been measured, with shallowly southwest dipping “Set 1” QTP-Au veins observed to be dominant in both abundance and gold content. At the Leprechaun, Marathon and Berry Deposits, Set 1 QTP-Au veins form densely stacked corridors of mineralization referred to as “Main Zones”. The extent and scale of these mineralised corridors appear related to the size and frequency of sheared mafic dykes which extend northeast-southwest within the granitoid rocks, parallel to the shear zone.

Figure 2: Location Map, Valentine Gold Project

Berry Deposit Drill Results

The drill results released today are derived from twenty-six drill holes located between sections 13570E and 14910E. The drill holes were located along the full 1.5 kilometre extent of the Berry Deposit, and located in areas of the Berry geological model that had been previously underexplored with a view to identifying new areas of mineralisation or validating areas of mineralisation previously modelled with lower confidence. Six holes were located in the western hanging-wall area of the deposit, eight were located in the central hanging-wall area, nine were located in the eastern hanging-wall area, and three were located in the footwall area close to the Valentine Lake Shear Zone (Figure 3). Twenty-five holes were oriented steeply to the northwest testing for Main Zone-type stacked QTP-Au mineralization in “Set 1” vein orientations. One hole was oriented more shallowly towards the SE. VL-20-882-EXT and VL-22-1202-EXT represent extensions of previously reported drill holes.

Table 1: Significant Assay Intervals from Drill Hole Collars VL-22-1202-EXT, VL-20-882-EXT, and VL-22-1261 to VL-22-1284, Berry Deposit, Valentine Gold Project

Notes on the Calculation of Assay Intervals

1. “Significant” assay intervals are defined as 1m core length or more of mineralization with an average fire assay result of greater than 0.7 g/t Au, representing the bottom cut-off for high-grade mill feed in the Marathon December 2022 Updated Feasibility Study mine plan. Assay intervals with an average fire assay result of between 0.3 g/t Au and 0.7 g/t Au are above the cut-off used in the July 2022 Mineral Resource estimate for the Berry Deposit but are not considered “significant” for the purposes of this news release.
2. Cut gold grades are calculated at 30 g/t Au.
3. No significant results in drill holes VL-22-1264, 1281 and 1284.
4. Drill hole VL-22-1265A was drilled to 24.9 m and abandoned. It was not sampled.

Figure 3: Location of Berry Deposit Exploration Drill Hole Collars VL-22-1202-EXT, VL-20-882-EXT, and VL-22-1261 to VL-22-1284

Figure 4: Long Section of the Berry Deposit (View NW) incorporating all drilling up to and including VL-22-1284, representing 121,013 metres, and assays above 0.3 g/t Au. New drill holes reported today are illustrated in blue.

Figure 5: Cross Section 14760E (View NE) with Significant (>0.7 g/t Au) Intercepts from DDH VL-20-882, Berry Deposit, Valentine Gold Project.

Figure 6: Cross Section 14760E (View NE) with Fire Assay Data from DDH VL-20-882, Berry Deposit, Valentine Gold Project.

Qualified Persons

Disclosure of a scientific or technical nature in this news release was prepared under the supervision of Mr. David Ross, P.Geo. (NL), Vice President of Geology and Exploration for Marathon Gold Corporation and Mr. Nicholas Capps, P.Geo. (NL), Manager of Exploration for Marathon Gold Corporation. Exploration data quality assurance and control for Marathon is under the supervision of Jessica Borysenko, P.Geo. (NL), GIS Manager for Marathon Gold Corporation. Mr. Ross, Mr. Capps and Ms. Borysenko are qualified persons under National Instrument (“NI”) 43-101. Mr. Roy Eccles, P.Geo. (NL), of APEX Geoscience Ltd. is a Qualified Person for purposes of NI 43-101, is independent of Marathon and the Valentine Gold Project, and has reviewed and takes responsibility for the updated July 2022 MRE prepared by John T. Boyd Company.

Quality Assurance-Quality Control

QA/QC protocols followed at the Valentine Gold Project include the insertion of blanks and standards at regular intervals in each sample batch. Drill core is cut in half with one half retained at site, the other half tagged and sent to Eastern Analytical Limited in Springdale, NL. All reported core samples are analyzed for Au by fire assay (30g) with AA finish. All samples above 0.30 g/t Au in economically interesting intervals are further assayed using metallic screen to mitigate the presence of coarse gold. Significant mineralized intervals are reported in Table 1 as core lengths and estimated true thickness (70 – 95% of core length), and reported with and without a top-cut of 30 g/t Au applied.

About Marathon

Marathon is a Toronto based gold company advancing its 100%-owned Valentine Gold Project located in the central region of Newfoundland and Labrador, one of the top mining jurisdictions in the world. The Project comprises a series of five mineralized deposits along a 32-kilometre system. A December 2022 Updated Feasibility Study outlined an open pit mining and conventional milling operation producing 195,000 ounces of gold a year for 12 years within a 14.3-year mine life. The Project was released from federal and provincial environmental assessment in 2022 and construction commenced in October 2022. The Project has estimated Proven Mineral Reserves of 1.43 Moz (23.36 Mt at 1.89 g/t) and Probable Mineral Reserves of 1.27 Moz (28.22 Mt at 1.40 g/t). Total Measured Mineral Resources (inclusive of the Mineral Reserves) comprise 2.06 Moz (29.23 Mt at 2.19 g/t) with Indicated Mineral Resources (inclusive of the Mineral Reserves) of 1.90 Moz (35.40 Mt at 1.67 g/t). Additional Inferred Mineral Resources are 1.10 Moz (20.75 Mt at 1.65 g/t Au). Please see the NI 43-101 Technical Report “Valentine Gold Project, NI 43-101 Technical Report and Feasibility Study” effective November 30, 2022, Marathon’s Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2021 and other filings made with Canadian securities regulatory authorities available at www.sedar.com for further details and assumptions relating to the Valentine Gold Project.