Dubai: The project manager of the World Airline Road Race (WARR) is confident the UAE will benefit from organising events like the one being held in Dubai later this month.
The Emirates Airline and Fly Dubai Running Clubs have come together to stage the 34th edition of the WARR race, which is hugely popular among airline employees across the world, here on October 23.
First staged in September 1982 in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, the inaugural race attracted 300 runners representing 30 different airlines. It was an overwhelming success and the organisers formed the International WARR Committee to organise future events across the world.
This is the first time the race is being held in the Gulf and Michael Ogolla from Emirates airline — who is project manager along with his colleague Lorraine Pereira and flydubai’s Sonya Patel — believes the presence of 1,500-odd visitors representing 50 airlines will be the perfect advertisement for the UAE.
“The Emirates Airline Running Club has been participating in this annual race for the past 15 years and we think it is a great honour to host so many runners from so many airlines. After the race, these participants will be ambassadors for the UAE, more so because they are from the travel industry,” Ogolla told Gulf News.
Some 250 employees from Emirates and another 110 from flydubai have confirmed for the race. With the theme of ‘Run the Sun, Sand and Skyscrapers’, the Dubai edition will be held at Al Mamzar Beach Park, with the 10km race flagged off at 6am and the 5km race at 7.30am. Both races will have six categories for men and women.
Even though the Dubai race is organised by the airline industry, it is open to other runners. The last date for registration is Saturday and running clubs and individuals have been asked to get in touch with the organisers.
Last year the WARR event was held in Dublin.
