BY NEZAR AL-TUWAIJRI
Race Arabia, in partnership with Dur Hospitality Company and the Diplomatic Quarter General Authority, hosted the inaugural DQ Triathlon 2019 event, the Kingdom’s first ever public triathlon. 150 people registered to take on the challenging course consisting of: a 400m swim at the DQ Sports Facilities 25m pool, followed by a 22km bike course, and ending with a hilly 5km run.
As organizers, nothing makes us happier than introducing people to a new sport and seeing the smiles on the athletes’ faces as they cross the finish line and challenge themselves physically. There was a record 50 athletes registered that were participating in their first triathlon on Saturday. We were very lucky to introduce them to the sport and be a part of their first triathlon experience.
The energy was high all throughout the event and especially at the finish line where the athletes were greeted with upbeat music, the announcement of their names as they approached the finish line, and huge cheers from fans and volunteers waiting for them with a medal to congratulate them for their achievement.
Special congratulations must be extended to the women’s and men’s champions. The DQ Triathlon women’s champion was Russian athlete Elena Osanay, who finished the course in an incredible time of 1:31:46. The fight for second place was extremely close, where Filipino Florie Marinas was able to pull through and get the second spot on the podium over American athlete Sarah Howe with her strong bike time of 47:04. Florie earned her spot with only 41 seconds separating her from third place Sarah Howe, who had a strong and steady performance all throughout the race.
The men’s champion was Yemeni R7 Run Club member and Riyadh Triathlete, AbdulElah Al Bakri who crushed the course with a time of 1:13:56. Brazilian Riyadh Triathletes committee member Carlos Alves earned the second spot with a time of 1:20:41, followed by Saudi KSA Triathlon Club member, Maan Almarghalani with less than two minutes separating the two.
Another notable athlete was 10-year-old Ghina El Ahmed who completed both the 400 meters swim and the 5km run course. Also, Maan Marghalani, a member of the KSA Triathlon club, who participated in his first triathlon since his severe bike accident 6 months ago, showing us that hard work, perseverance and belief in yourself can get you through anything. Maan has proved time and time again that no human is limited.
