The fifth Ooredoo Marathon took place on Friday, with hundreds of runners from across Qatar taking part in a number of different races.
Kicking off at 6.30 am at the Museum of Islamic Arts Park, the event saw runners jog, sprint, and walk around the full marathon route, which looped the Corniche.
HE Salah bin Ghanem bin Nasser Al Ali, Minister of Youth and Sports, joined senior Ooredoo executives on the start line, including H.E. Sheikh Abdulla Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al-Thani, Chairman, Ooredoo and Sheikh Saud Bin Nasser Al-Thani, Group CEO, Ooredoo.
There were three competitive races full marathon (42.195km), half-marathon (21.0975km), and 10km) where the winners received a range of prizes.
Ooredoo also hosted a children s 1km fun run as well as family-friendly 3km and 5km races. First place for the full Ooredoo Men's Marathon went to Henry Kilagat of Kenya, with an impressive time of 2 hours and 16 seconds.
He was followed by his compatriots, Benard Kipsang Chumba and Henry Kipsang, also of Kenya. Runners from Kenya also led among the women marathon runners, with Georgina Rono of Kenya coming first in two hour and 38 seconds, followed by Vicoty Chepkemoi and Sally Kimaiyo.
In the half marathon, Alex Kibet of Kenya came first, followed by Benard Korir of Kenya and Aziz Lahbabi of Morocco. Violah Jepchumba, Faith Chepkoech and Daisy Chepngeno Langt, all of Kenya, came in the top three places among the women.
Alsadik Mikhou of Bahrain won the 10K race, followed by Edwin Rotich and Elnathan Kipkemboi Rotich of Kenya. Eilish McColgan of Great Britain, Isora Sosa Caballero of Spain and Eva Taggart of Great Britain came in the top positions for women.
Speaking about the event, Fatima Sultan Al Kuwari, Director of Community Public Relations, Ooredoo, said: Firstly, we offer big congratulations to all the runners and our thanks to the many supporters who came to cheer them on, emergency staff for keeping our competitors safe and volunteers for making this year s event so successful. I m extremely happy to see the amount of families and friends taking part in the race, as the Ooredoo Marathon is not only an amazing lifestyle festival but raises money for a great cause. We hope the event has encouraged the people of Qatar to live a healthier lifestyle and come together as a community, she added.
All funds raised from the 2017 Ooredoo Marathon will be donated to Reach Out To Asia.
The charity aims to help develop the potential of Asia s people through a network of centres devoted to progressive education, research and community welfare.
The Ooredoo Marathon, which began in 2013, was designed to help Qatar s people become more active and healthy, and has grown into a highly-anticipated event for experienced marathon runners, health conscious people and novices alike.
