Dubai Holding Honours Outstanding Performances in Dubai Marathon

DUBAI, 25 February 2012: Dubai Holding, a global investment group, has honoured nine UAE Nationals for their outstanding performances in the 2012 Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon.

At a ceremony, held at Dubai Holding’s Emirates Towers’ headquarters, the three fastest UAE Nationals, in the 42k marathon, and 10k (men and women) races, shared cash prizes totalling AED 86,000.

Those honoured at the ceremony were Mebarak Msabah Elmanhali, from Al Ain, who recorded a time of 2:59:42, to lead the UAE runners home in the men’s marathon. He finished ahead of Naser Mohamed Al Marzouqi, from the Jumeirah Group, who finished in a time of 2:59:56 and Salem Mohamed Abdullah, of Dubai, who completed the race in 3:05:17.

Other leading UAE National performances honoured were those of Obaid Mohammad Al Neimi, from Fujairah, who finished ahead of Bader Al Alawi and Mubarak Rashid Al Marashda in the men’s 10k event. In the women’s 10k event, Bethlem Desdalyn led home Dana Al Marzooqi and Sameera Saleh Al Romanthi.

Ahmed Bin Byat, Chief Executive Officer, Dubai Holding said: “As a leading UAE company, with a major stake in life improving companies, we are committed to supporting local initiatives that promote a healthier and fitter lifestyle among UAE residents.

“It is heartening to see Nationals from across the emirates participate with great enthusiasm. We are especially keen to encourage more UAE Nationals to become involved in sports and we hope that aspiring UAE National sportsmen and women will be inspired by the outstanding performances of these athletes honoured today.”

In addition to Bin Byat, the ceremony, which also recognised Dubai Holding employees who participated in the event, was attended by Gerald Lawless, Executive Chairman of Jumeirah Group and Peter Connerton, Director, Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon.

The 2012 Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon marked the fifth year of Dubai Holding’s support sponsorship for the event. In 2011, Dubai Holding introduced the UAE Nationals category aimed at encouraging UAE citizens to participate in the marathon. This year’s races saw a 116% increase in participation by UAE Nationals, up from 91 in 2011 to 197 in 2012.

Once again, Dubai Holding fielded the largest corporate team, with around 1,400 employees taking part in the event.