Becky Hayward of the UK and Norway’s Ingrid Feliza Fuglestad topped the overall charts in the 10K and 5K Run, while Shamsa Salim of the UAE was fastest in the 2.5K Run of the opening stage of the four-stop Dubai Women’s Running Challenge, which attracted more than 300 enthusiasts to Dubai Safari Park on a foggy Saturday morning.

In the 2.5km Run, Emirati Shamsa Salim blitzed through the course with a time of nine minutes and 15 seconds, finishing three minutes and 22 seconds ahead of Oman’s Khlood Al Saadi (12:37) in the overall rankings, while Analyn Fuglestad (13:18) of Norway was third, a further 41 seconds behind.

Becky Hayward, meanwhile, took the overall honours in the 10km run with a time of 47:28, finishing a minute and 37 seconds ahead of Helen Boland of Ireland (49:05), while Kahli Johnson of the UK was third overall with a time of 49:10.

In the 5km Run, Ingrid Feliza Fuglestad was fastest with a time of 22:38, finishing 17 seconds ahead of Egypt’s Joud Dabous (22:55), while Louise MacGregor (24:37) of the UK came in third.

Organised in collaboration with Dubai Municipality under the slogan “It is good to compete in the World’s Coolest Winter”, Stage 1 one of the Challenge provided the participants with an unforgettable experience as they ran past lions, giraffes and many other exotic animals on a chilly morning.

“We are so excited to have run this race in the Dubai Safari Park,” said Elizabeth Manrique, who took part with her daughter Lucia Ferris Manrique. “I have just done the 5km and Lucia has done the 2.5km. The race is absolutely fantastic. We saw lions, we saw elephants, and we saw hyenas. We absolutely loved it.”

“I have just completed the 5km today at Dubai Safari Park,” said Vicki Matheson of Scotland, who also took part in the 5K. “It’s the first race in four. I saw the lions – I ran past them. It was cold at the start. We had to go up the hill, but we all finished. It was an amazing morning.”

The next stage of the Challenge will take place on January 23 at another unique location, the Palm Jumeirah, while Stage 3, which will be a night race starting at 9pm, will take the ladies to Dubai Garden Glow on January 28. The Challenge will then wind up on February 6 at Al Seef, allowing participants to soak in the atmosphere in what is the cultural and historic district of Dubai.

Registration for the remaining three stages of the Dubai Women’s Running Challenge is open on the Hopasports website (https://www.hopasports.com/en/event/dubai-women-running-challenge-series-2-of-4-palm-jumeirah).

UNIQUE MEDAL

To encourage and honour participants, Dubai Sports Council has designed a unique set of medals for the Dubai Women’s Running Challenge. The medal for each stage has been designed to represent the landscape of that particular stage and, when put together, the four medals will spell “Dubai”.

The Dubai Women’s Running Challenge joins a growing list of initiatives and events launched by Dubai Sports Council to promote sports and a physically active lifestyle among all segments of the community, especially among women and children. The Challenge will be a boost for women of different age and nationalities, who are looking for such events to satiate their competitive urges.

The Challenge also comes as part of Dubai Sports Council’s strategic objective of empowering women, and promoting sports and physical activity among women through such competitions, which encourage women of all age and abilities to take part and also enjoy a wonderful new experience.

Women’s events and tournaments organized by Dubai Sports Council are becoming increasingly popular with women of different nationalities and age, allowing them to compete in an atmosphere of privacy and in confirmation with the customs and traditions of the region.

RESULTS

10km RUN

Age 18-39: 1-Becky Hayward (UK) 47:28; 2-Helen Boland (Ireland) 49:05; 3-Nataliia Kovshova (Ukraine) 51:50; 4-Josephine Kiernan (UK) 52:03; Raghda Helal (Egypt) 52:29.

Age 40-49: 1-Kahli Johnson (UK) 49:10; 2-Olena Romanova (Ukraine) 49:46; 3-Lisa Garrett (UK) 50:04; 4-Tatiana Savelyeva (Russia) 50:23; 5-Nevine Nour (Egypt) 53:06.

Age 50-59: 1-Sioned Taylor (UK) 51:33; 2-Alia Greaney (UAE) 56:40; 3-Zeenah Shubar (Iraq) 01:02:19; 4-Rebecca Green (UK) 01:06:24; 5-Martine Iarroque (France) 01:19:49.

Age 60-99: 1-Jane Clark (UK) 01:00:21; 2-Jane Matheson (UK) 01:13:59.

5km RUN: 1-Ingrid Feliza Fuglestad (Norway) 22:38; 2-Joud Dabous (Egypt) 22:55; 3-Louise MacGregor (UK) 24:37; 4-Nadine Kahaleh (Lebanon) 26:03; 5-Sanaa Shawabkeh (Jordan) 26:46.

2.5km RUN

Age 18-99: 1-Shamsa Salim (UAE) 09:15; 2-Khlood Al Saadi (Oman) 12:37; 3-Analyn Fuglestad (Norway) 13:18; 4-Noor Kuhail (UAE) 14:08; 5-Lyndsey Steven (South Africa) 14:19.

Age 15-17: 1-Tia Watson (UK) 16:18; 2-Sadaf Abdullah Abdul Qadir (India) 34:02.

Age 10-14: 1-Nouf Al Balooshi (USA) 14:45; 2-Emaan Muhammad (Pakistan) 18:28; 3-Salama Aldarmaki (UAE) 21:00.

Age 5-9: 1-Cillian York (South Africa) 14:17; 2-Maggie Parkin (UK) 14:19; 3-Lucia Ferris Manrique (UK) 16:26.