The onset of cooler weather in the UAE means it’s time to get outside with those trainers on because Dubai Fitness Challenge is upon us.
The fifth annual event starts on Friday and runs until November 27. Those interested in committing 30 minutes of daily activity for 30 days can now register for the initiative on the official website.
There’s a full schedule of events and activities taking place city-wide to help you stay true to your goals. Here’s a look at some of what's on offer:
Dubai Ride and Dubai Run are back
One of Dubai Fitness Challenge’s most popular events is Dubai Ride and this year it will be held on Friday, November 5, giving cyclists the chance to experience the city’s best roads on two wheels. Presented by DP World, participants can choose between a 14-kilometre general route around Sheikh Zayed Road or a 4km fun ride with family and friends around Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Boulevard. The race is free to attend but registration is essential at dubairide.com.
Dubai Run is also making a return, with runners of all ages and abilities encouraged to take to Sheikh Zayed Road on Friday, November 26. There will be a 5km route for families and a 10km for athletes, with both starting next to Emirates Towers Metro Station. The 5km route loops around DIFC, while the 10km one will take the overpass towards Downtown Dubai, with gorgeous views of Burj Khalifa and other skyscrapers.
Three DFC Fitness Villages
This year, DFC’s Fitness Villages, which are outdoor spaces offering an array of sports and fitness classes at each venue, will return. These villages will operate throughout the 30 days and cater to all ages and fitness levels.
The Mai Dubai Fitness Village in Mushrif Park will feature six zones to help you achieve your fitness goals, from pools to a multifunctional gym with trainers, to a Kids Zone complete with an obstacle course. It will be open daily, from Saturday to Wednesday between 4pm and 10pm, and Thursday to Friday, from 4pm to 11pm.
The DP World Fitness Village at Kite Beach will have the seaside activity centre dedicated to DFC, with a variety of free health and fitness activities daily (Sunday to Thursday, 2pm to 11pm, and Friday and Saturday, 7am to 11pm). This year, visitors can expect 15 sports zones for activities such as HIIT training, yoga, cycling and water sports. The village also features a ladies-only zone, Fun Spot Kids Zone and Etisalat main stage area for live classes and sessions. This year, anyone registered with DFC can book a session at the Padel Tennis Arena, with a court offering classes and training sessions for all levels. For yoga lovers, there’s the new Suspension Yoga zone.
Meanwhile, the Expo 2020 Dubai site will also feature a Fitness Village packed with running events, a Global Fitness Stage, football pitch, cricket nets, a gym, multisports area and more.
Expo 2020 x Dubai Fitness Challenge
Expo 2020 Dubai is set to make every athlete’s dream come true, with a variety of activities taking place and a wide expanse. Runners can lace up and train at the Expo Running Club on all 182 days of the world fair, with 30-minute classes taking place daily, for all experience levels.
Expo 2020's Dubai Fitness Village offers sports, fitness and well-being activities designed to promote physical activity, in a 5,400-square-metre space. Adjacent to Mobility Gate, the sporting facility features a gym, a five-a-side football pitch, a multipurpose court for basketball, netball, volleyball and tennis, and a stage with daily classes. A huge number of events will be hosted by participating countries at the Fitness Village throughout Expo 2020, including the arrival of the Harlem Globetrotters to launch a 3-on-3 basketball tournament every weekend of DFC.
Meanwhile a new – and once-in-a-lifetime – event coming to Dubai’s race calendar this year is the Expo 2020 Dubai Run on Friday, November 19. It will take participants around the global fair's pavilions, with the option to take 3km, 5km and 10km routes. Those looking for something more laid-back can sign up for the informal and free Run the World Family Run, taking place every Saturday morning.
DFC Fitness Hubs
DFC’s free Fitness Hubs will be located across numerous residential and commercial neighbourhoods in the city, offering you the chance to get moving with the help of certified fitness instructors. This year will have 14 hubs in total: Zabeel Ladies Club, Hatta, Uform at D3, One Central, Dubai Media City, DIFC, Dubai Police Officers' Club, DMCC, Dubai Healthcare City, Dubai Studio City, La Mer, Champs Sports & Fitness Club, Dubai Digital Park, and Dubai Sports City. Each will offer a different mix of sports and fitness sessions such as bodyweight training, cycling, HIIT and Zumba.
Dubai Padel Cup
Over the last year, padel has come into its own in the UAE. So it seems fitting that the fifth DFC will feature the inaugural Dubai Padel Cup. This new event on the DFC calendar includes three days of exhibition matches at Jumeirah Emirates Towers and will feature some of the world’s top-ranked professionals, as well as a dedicated championship for amateur players in various categories of ability. The buzz around padel will continue with citywide activations to help you improve your skills at locations across Dubai.
Free fitness events
A number of venues across Dubai will also offer free sessions to get the blood pumping – so watch out for these offers and promotions. Theatre of Digital Art will host free yoga sessions every Friday from 10am to 11am, starting this Friday, and continuing until Friday, November 26. A certified coach specialising in hatha-vinyasa yoga will take participants through a low-impact workout that’s easy on the joints.
Meanwhile, from this Friday until Saturday, November 27, Festival Plaza will be hosting free Zumba sessions in the mall, at 7.30pm daily during weekdays and 10am on weekends.
Action-packed calendar of races
Apart from Dubai Run and Dubai Ride, there’s a number of races and runs taking place during DFC that you can now sign up for. These are:
Hero Dubai Hatta (Friday, October 29)
Dubai South Run (Friday, October 29)
Halloween Run at Dubai Festival City Mall (Saturday, October 30)
Super Sports Canal Night Run (Tuesday, November 2)
The Night Run at Run The Track (Tuesday, November 9)
Dubai Design District Run (Friday, November 12)
Al Marmoom Dune Run (Friday, November 12)
Beach Run Festival (Friday, November 12)
La Mer Open Water Swim (Sunday, November 14)
Skechers Performance Run 1 (Friday, November 19)
The CBD Run on The Palm (Friday, November 26)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 760Nm
Price: Dh898,000
On sale: now
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
SUZUME
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Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 290hp
Torque: 340Nm
Price: Dh155,800
On sale: now
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
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Gothia Cup 2025
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26 UAE teams
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2 Kuwaiti teams
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
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Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl
Power: 153hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 200Nm at 4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Price: Dh99,000
On sale: now
The stats
Ship name: MSC Bellissima
Ship class: Meraviglia Class
Delivery date: February 27, 2019
Gross tonnage: 171,598 GT
Passenger capacity: 5,686
Crew members: 1,536
Number of cabins: 2,217
Length: 315.3 metres
Maximum speed: 22.7 knots (42kph)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
