Dubai: The ‘Marathon at Home’ on Friday (April 10) has attracted a field of 749 runners representing 62 different nationalities.
A collaboration between Dubai Sports Council (DSC), Asics Middle East and 5:30 Run club, the ‘Marathon at Home’ will take place on April 10 under the umbrella of DSC’s ‘Be Fit, Be Safe’ and #stayhome campaigns, with the aim of keeping members of UAE’s community in running shape inside their home.
The Marathon at Home will be a timed 42.195 km race open to people of all ages and abilities, and it has attracted participants from across the region. Besides the UAE, runners from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain and Jordan will also be taking part in this unique event.
Of the 749 participants who registered through the www.530run.ae website, 526 are males and 223 females, with the youngest participant being 18 years and the oldest is 65.
The marathon will take place between 8 am and 6 pm on Friday [UAE time] with a 10-hour time cap. Participants are free to decide on the shape of their running course, but running on a treadmill or any other training equipment is not permitted. Running in public areas is also strictly not allowed - the participant will need to physically run on ground and inside their house.
Race entry is non-transferable between individuals and relays are also not allowed, and participants will have to make sure they have a fully-charged smartwatch or smartphone on them with the Strava app installed and activated. They will have to join the ‘Marathon at Home’ group on Strava and stay connected as the app will detect their movement and will assist in keeping track of their timing and distance travelled.
There are plenty of prizes on offer for top finishers with all the finishers receiving a certificate from Asics ME and 5:30 Run, an Asics T-shirt and a finisher’s medal.
The top three finishers in the two categories – men and women - will get a full running gear kit by Asics, an entry ticket to the Moscow Marathon, which is scheduled to take place in September and a finisher medal. The Top 10, meanwhile, will receive 10 EMS (Electrical Muscle Stimulation) functional training sessions from Vertexfitness.
