Dubai: An Emirati executive has climbed the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro in less than 24 hours and hoisted the Emirati flag to commemorate National Day.
Ali Dawood, Senior Vice-President for the Africa region at Economic Zones World, reached Uhuru Peak on December 2 and dedicated the trek to the leaders of the federation.
"I wanted to send a message to all Emiratis that we can all do it, and also to dedicate the raising of the flag on Mount Kilimanjaro to the rulers of Abu Dhabi and Dubai," said Dawood, 46, who noted that they became the first people from the Middle East to climb it in a day.
This has been the sixth time that Dawood has taken upon the task of reaching the mountain's peak, and is no stranger to trekking through the rain forest and the snow.
Mount Kilimanjaro is located in northeast Tanzania and is the highest peak in Africa. Uhuru Peak, on the Kibo cone, is Kilimanjaro's summit at an altitude of 5,681 metres.
Despite strong winds blowing against him, Dawood did not let that factor slow him down and accompanied by a tour guide and his close friend Nasser Al Khaja, 39, the trio conquered the mountain within 24 hours. Some people can take up to eight days to climb the mountain, according to Dawood.
Planning
"Planning the trek was very important because we needed to get permission first from the park's warden so that we could start at 6am instead of 9am like everybody else. Otherwise we wouldn't have been able to make it in that record of time."
Dawood, who played squash for the UAE national team in 1999, is an avid sportsman and he pointed out that he was able to reach the summit last week through his constant interest in keeping fit.
"I have [the need to play] sports in my blood and I have to work out every day.
"But I still had to prepare myself beforehand. Every Friday and Saturday, Nasser and I would go on the treadmill at an upward slope for three hours in the morning and once in the afternoon, and cover 70 kilometres every week."
Recounting his trek, Dawood explained that he started out the route at Marangu Gate which then goes through a rainforest and up to Manadra Hut.
"We then took the Alpine route, which is very hard work, because the hills were very steep," he said, emphasising that they managed to complete the first leg of the trek in one hour and 45 minutes instead of the usual three hours.
Adverse conditions
"At this point we were 4,700 metres above sea level and it was very cold. It was very slippery and snowing heavily, and we had to drink fluids constantly and eat a light lunch. But we managed to find the strength in ourselves to continue."
The team then went on from Mandara to Horombo in four hours instead of five hours where they then slept the night, before reaching Gilman's point, which is a 45 minute walk from their final destination of Uhuru Peak.
