Dubai challenges residents in a world-first ‘Marathon at Home’

As we all look to new and unique ways to keep ourselves fit and healthy amidst the lockdown, Dubai's latest fitness challenge for its residents is truly unique and exciting! Dubai residents will be stepping up and putting on their running shoes to participate in a 'Marathon at Home', a first-of-its-kind initiative.

The Marathon at Home initiative has been launched by the Dubai Sports Council (DSC), in collaboration with ASICS Middle East and 5:30 Run club and will take place under the umbrella of DSC's 'Be Fit, Be Safe' and #stayhome campaigns. It has been specially designed to keep members of the UAE community in running shape inside their home.

The first of its kind in the world, Marathon at Home will be a timed 42.192km race open to people of all ages and abilities, and will take place on Friday, April 10, between 8 am and 6 pm, UAE time, with a 10-hour time cap.

Participants can decide the shape of their running course but running on a treadmill or any other training equipment will not be acceptable. Running in public areas is also not allowed - the participant will need to physically run on ground and inside their house.

The participants will also have to make sure that they have a fully charged smartwatch or smartphone, 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 traveled.

While there won't be an official finish line or medal ceremony, there are still lots of prizes up for grabs. The top three men and women to finish will receive a fully equipped running kit, as well as a finisher medal and an entry ticket to the Moscow Marathon, which is set to take place in September. The top 10 finishers will receive 10 Electrical Muscle Stimulation functional training sessions. Additionally, all finishers will receive a finisher medal, certificate and T-shirt.

Marathon at Home puts forth Dubai's commitment to ensure that its residents continue to be engaged and maintain an active, healthy lifestyle while staying safe at home.