Running a marathon in itself is no mean feat. But with people across the UAE staying indoors and practising social distancing, some have gone that extra mile, quite literally, by running marathons at home or on their apartment balconies.
Saudi national Abdallah Alireza is one such person. On Thursday, April 2, the businessman live-streamed his balcony run in his DIFC apartment – complete with the Burj Khalifa glinting away in the distance – on Instagram.
Alireza has previous experience in the health and fitness industry, and moved to the UAE mid-February looking to partner with Bespoke Ride gym. However, the subsequent outbreak of the coronavirus has led to gyms closing their doors – which meant Alireza had to work from home. But it didn’t stop him from his daily fitness goals.
He came up with the idea to do the balcony run three days ago in an effort to challenge himself. "Like most people, I've been struggling to maintain discipline and a schedule. With working from home, it's hard to find that balance. Exercise has always been a big part of my life. I've always been training for marathons or races and just staying healthy. So I just decided to go for it."
“I also wanted to prove to people that, just because you’re stuck at home doesn’t mean you can’t do anything,” he adds. “Some would think it’s impossible, but almost everyone is capable of running a marathon – even if it’s on a balcony.”
Alireza has participated in five marathons in the past, and keeps up with regular fitness exercises, so he saw this as an opportunity to team up with Move4MentalHealth, an organisation that raises awareness on mental health issues.
But, even he had to admit that running 42.2 kilometres on a balcony is harder than a usual marathon outside.
“The obvious thing is the back and forth motion, which can take a toll on your knees,” he explains. “Obviously, in a normal marathon, you are running in a straight line so you have that momentum pushing you forward, but over here you have to slow down and turn around consistently. You end up putting in additional effort. But more than that, it’s the mental aspect that can get to you – when you’re on your balcony, what you’re seeing for the most part are two walls. Staying relaxed and distracted can be a bit of a challenge.” We’re sure that having the Burj Khalifa in sight helped plenty though.
I also wanted to prove to people that, just because you're stuck at home doesn't mean you can't do anything. Some would think it's impossible but almost everyone is capable of running a marathon – even if it's on a balcony
Alireza started his run at 4.15am, when it was still dark, and completed it in 3 hours and 46 minutes. The entire event was streamed to his followers on Instagram Live. Just as impressive is the fact that, after he ran the marathon, he continued with his usual daily routine – having something to eat and sitting down for a full day's work. "I want to show people that I didn't just spend the day running – I can manage my daily life too."
“The experience was a lot of fun,” he adds. “I had a lot of friends and family joining me and supporting me online and that made the experience a lot more enjoyable.”
Alireza also wants to encourage others to use this time to incorporate a daily home workout routine – even if that means starting small. “It’s all about getting started with relatively simple tasks – just 10 jumping jacks or sit-ups a day, and doing it consistently. It doesn’t help to do a hard workout and then nothing for three days. Find something you enjoy sticking to and slowly build on that,” he says.
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
'Munich: The Edge of War'
Director: Christian Schwochow
Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons
Rating: 3/5
JAPAN SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Masaaki Higashiguchi, Shuichi Gonda, Daniel Schmidt
Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo, Tomoaki Makino, Maya Yoshida, Sho Sasaki, Hiroki Sakai, Sei Muroya, Genta Miura, Takehiro Tomiyasu
Midfielders: Toshihiro Aoyama, Genki Haraguchi, Gaku Shibasaki, Wataru Endo, Junya Ito, Shoya Nakajima, Takumi Minamino, Hidemasa Morita, Ritsu Doan
Forwards: Yuya Osako, Takuma Asano, Koya Kitagawa
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- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
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Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
Stage result
1. Jasper Philipsen (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix 4:42:34
2. Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Hansgrohe
3. Elia Viviani (Ita) Ineos Grenadiers
4. Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) BikeExchange-Jayco
5. Emils Liepins (Lat) Trek-Segafredo
6. Arnaud Demare (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
7. Max Kanter (Ger) Movistar Team
8. Olav Kooij (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
9. Tom Devriendt (Bel) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux
10. Pascal Ackermann (Ger) UAE Team Emirate
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Results
Male 51kg Round 1
Dias Karmanov (KAZ) beat Mabrook Rasea (YEM) by points 2-1.
Male 54kg Round 1
Yelaman Sayassatov (KAZ) beat Chen Huang (TPE) TKO Round 1; Huynh Hoang Phi (VIE) beat Fahad Anakkayi (IND) RSC Round 2; Qais Al Jamal (JOR) beat Man Long Ng (MAC) by points 3-0; Ayad Albadr (IRQ) beat Yashar Yazdani (IRI) by points 2-1.
Male 57kg Round 1
Natthawat Suzikong (THA) beat Abdallah Ondash (LBN) by points 3-0; Almaz Sarsembekov (KAZ) beat Ahmed Al Jubainawi (IRQ) by points 2-1; Hamed Almatari (YEM) beat Nasser Al Rugheeb (KUW) by points 3-0; Zakaria El Jamari (UAE) beat Yu Xi Chen (TPE) by points 3-0.
Men 86kg Round 1
Ahmad Bahman (UAE) beat Mohammad Al Khatib (PAL) by points 2-1
Men 63.5kg Round 1
Noureddin Samir (UAE) beat Polash Chakma (BAN) RSC Round 1.
Female 45kg quarter finals
Narges Mohammadpour (IRI) beat Yuen Wai Chan (HKG) by points.
Female 48kg quarter finals
Szi Ki Wong (HKG) beat Dimple Vaishnav (IND) RSC round 2; Thanawan Thongduang (THA) beat Nastaran Soori (IRI) by points; Shabnam Hussain Zada (AFG) beat Tzu Ching Lin (TPE) by points.
Female 57kg quarter finals
Nguyen Thi Nguyet (VIE) beat Anisha Shetty (IND) by points 2-1; Areeya Sahot (THA) beat Dana Al Mayyal (KUW) RSC Round 1; Sara Idriss (LBN) beat Ching Yee Tsang (HKG) by points 3-0.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
German plea
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the German parliament that. Russia had erected a new wall across Europe.
"It's not a Berlin Wall -- it is a Wall in central Europe between freedom and bondage and this Wall is growing bigger with every bomb" dropped on Ukraine, Zelenskyy told MPs.
Mr Zelenskyy was applauded by MPs in the Bundestag as he addressed Chancellor Olaf Scholz directly.
"Dear Mr Scholz, tear down this Wall," he said, evoking US President Ronald Reagan's 1987 appeal to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.
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EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS
Estijaba – 8001717 – number to call to request coronavirus testing
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Name: Oulo.com
Founder: Kamal Nazha
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2020
Number of employees: 5
Sector: Technology
Funding: $450,000
