Two Dubai adventurers aim to complete seven marathons on seven continents within seven days, in one of the world’s toughest endurance running challenges.
Britons James Elliot-Square and Paris Norriss will take on the World Marathon Challenge that involves back-to-back 42.2km runs in January.
The pair will experience a world of extremes, setting off from Antarctica where the temperature is expected to be -25C across a course of ice and snow, before jumping on a chartered plane to South Africa where sunshine could see the mercury rise to 30C.
To set foot on Antarctica is one thing, but to run a marathon there? Not many people can say they've done that
James Elliot-Square
From Cape Town, both will then try to catch up on sleep, food and hydration in the air as they fly to Perth, Western Australia. The fourth leg will see them jet off to their home city of Dubai, before running more marathons in Madrid, Fortaleza in Brazil, and ending in Miami. They will leave an expensive carbon footprint behind from their almost 300km global challenge, but they hope to raise $200,000 to support children’s charities in the UAE and Hong Kong.
“James came up with this crazy idea to run a marathon in every continent on the planet in a week, so seven marathons, seven days on seven continents,” said Mr Norriss, 39, who runs a production company and has form in endurance events, as part of a crew that rowed the Pacific Ocean in 2023. “We have to do the whole thing in a week. So the biggest issue is the logistics.
“When we land, we'll have just a few hours and then we've got to get running. I'm looking to do each one in about five hours and James might get something closer to four hours per marathon. We'll have just a couple of hours to have a bit of food, refresh and then we're back on the plane where we will be trying to recover.”
Guinness World Records
The World Marathon Challenge is acknowledged by the Guinness World Records. The shortest average time per marathon recorded by a man was 2 hours 45 minutes and 57 seconds, set by American Michael Wardian. Meanwhile the fastest woman was Kristina Schou from Denmark who averaged a marathon time of 3 hours 25 minutes and 57 seconds.
Another American athlete, Kyle Vogt completed all seven in a world record of three days, nine hours and 38 minutes, while the shortest time for a woman was American Becca Pizzi who took six days, seven hours and 58 minutes. Blisters and injury pose the biggest problems for the pair of runners, who have been supplied with several pairs of running shoes each by a sponsor, Asics. The two men, friends since school, have limited marathon running experience, but have cranked up their training schedules to cover around 80km a week.
“There's only two aeroplanes that we will go on, one will be to Antarctica because that's a special type of Russian plane,” said Mr Norriss. “And from then on from Cape Town all the way around, we have a chartered plane. There'll be a few other runners from around the world with us.”
Mr Norris has had a series of adventure travel programmes featured on Emirates flights. He plans to record his experience and produce a short film for each marathon leg.
The pair aim to raise $200,000 for the Sparkle Foundation and the Sovereign Art Foundation, two charities that support underprivileged children around the world.
“The Sovereign Art Foundation in Hong Kong does workshops with kids, using art therapy to help underprivileged children,” said Mr Elliot-Square, 41. “Some have gone through trafficking, violence in the home, are orphans or under-privileged in other ways.
“We want to make a difference for charities that aren't necessarily as well known as some of the mainstream ones. I like to see the money actually getting to the end-user, rather than it being swallowed up by a lot of red tape. Sparkle is a great charity, and they do some amazing work in Africa.”
Air time
The challenge will also have a competitive team element, with the fastest combined marathon times of the top three team scorers, who finish all seven marathons, declared winners. Runners are expected to be in the air for around 68 hours during the week-long event. It will be a particular challenge for Mr Elliot-Square who manages a permanent foot injury.
“I had a rugby accident when I was 21 and severed nerves and ligaments in my left leg,” said Mr Elliot-Square, who advises businesses looking to expand in the GCC. “I still have drop foot, so when I run I have a slightly different style.
“After such long exercises, it can have a knock-on effect so I'm a little bit worried about that. My mind is strong, so I’m sure I'm going to get through this. To set foot on Antarctica is one thing, but to run a marathon there? Not many people can say they've done that.”
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
More from UAE Human Development Report:
Awar Qalb
Director: Jamal Salem
Starring: Abdulla Zaid, Joma Ali, Neven Madi and Khadija Sleiman
Two stars
More from Armen Sarkissian
NINE WINLESS GAMES
Arsenal 2-2 Crystal Palace (Oct 27, PL)
Liverpool 5-5 Arsenal (Oct 30, EFL)
Arsenal 1-1 Wolves (Nov 02, PL)
Vitoria Guimaraes 1-1 Arsenal (Nov 6, Europa)
Leicester 2-0 Arsenal (Nov 9, PL)
Arsenal 2-2 Southampton (Nov 23, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt (Nov 28, Europa)
Norwich 2-2 Arsenal (Dec 01, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Brighton (Dec 05, PL)
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
Results:
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 2,200m | Winner: AF Al Montaqem, Bernardo Pinheiro (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,200m | Winner: Daber W’Rsan, Connor Beasley, Jaci Wickham
6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh85,000 1,600m | Winner: Bainoona, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m | Winner: AF Makerah, Antonio Fresu, Ernst Oertel
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 | Winner: AF Motaghatres, Antonio Fresu, Ernst Oertel
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh90,000 1,600m | Winner: Tafakhor, Ronan Whelan, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
Company profile
Name: Fruitful Day
Founders: Marie-Christine Luijckx, Lyla Dalal AlRawi, Lindsey Fournie
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2015
Number of employees: 30
Sector: F&B
Funding so far: Dh3 million
Future funding plans: None at present
Future markets: Saudi Arabia, potentially Kuwait and other GCC countries
More on Quran memorisation:
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Panipat
Director Ashutosh Gowariker
Produced Ashutosh Gowariker, Rohit Shelatkar, Reliance Entertainment
Cast Arjun Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt, Kriti Sanon, Mohnish Behl, Padmini Kolhapure, Zeenat Aman
Rating 3 /5 stars
The low down
Producers: Uniglobe Entertainment & Vision Films
Director: Namrata Singh Gujral
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Nargis Fakhri, Bo Derek, Candy Clark
Rating: 2/5
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
THE SPECS
Touareg Highline
Engine: 3.0-litre, V6
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 340hp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh239,312
