DUBAI: Dr. Mariam Saleh Binladen, a Saudi dentist and humanitarian, set a new record that added to her tally of world records, while crossing the Dubai Creek and the Dubai Water Canal, swimming a total distance of 24 kilometers on Friday.
Under the patronage of Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, crown prince of Dubai and chairman of the Dubai Sports Council, the special event was held in collaboration with the Dubai Sports Council, the Dubai Maritime City Authority, the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority and the Dubai Police and Marine Rescue.
This event, which is part of Binladen’s continued pledge to support orphaned Syrian refugees, was attended by a delegation from the Dubai Sports Council and other supporting partners, as well as marine safety, rescue and co-ordination teams.
Mariam’s challenging undertaking began at 5 a.m. on Friday, starting from the canal’s Dubai Creek entrance in the Al-Shindagha area of Dubai’s historic district. She achieved the feat at 2.10 p.m., finishing at Al-Ghubaiba Station next to the Four Seasons Hotel. While swimming for 9 hours and 10 minutes, Binladen battled through strong
currents at the entrance and mouth of the canal, while passing through some of Dubai’s most striking tourism sites.
After reaching the finish line, Binladen expressed her gratitude for the huge support that she received, and said, “I want to extend my warmest appreciation and gratitude to Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum for his patronage of the event, and to the team members who worked really hard over the past month to make this great event a memorable success.”
“I would also like to thank all the people who turned up just to cheer and encourage me throughout the day. I am thrilled and delighted to become the first person to complete a 24km swim along the wonderful, yet challenging, Dubai Water Canal,” added Binladen.
“It was a very challenging experience indeed, given that my preparation time was extremely short, barely one month of preparations to make this event happen. So, I am really happy to have completed the swim successfully, which would not have happened without the amazing support of my family, my crew, my trainer, Fiona, the team from DSC and all the other parties that were involved in this event,” she added.
“This event is part of my continued pledge to raise awareness for the plight of thousands of orphaned Syrian refugees who have lost their parents and guardians, and have been uprooted from their homes, and scattered across different parts of the world. I also wanted to motivate more and more women from the Arab World to take on sports and use their talents to achieve the unachievable, knowing that nothing is impossible,” she said.
Saudi woman first swimmer to cross Dubai Creek, Water Canal
Saudi woman first swimmer to cross Dubai Creek, Water Canal
Al-Hilal win tightens Saudi Pro League title race
- The 3-2 victory over Al-Khaleej leaves Al-Hilal a single point behind Riyadh rivals Al-Nassr, who play on Saturday
DUBAI: The gap at the top of the Saudi Pro League table was cut to just one point on Friday night, following Al-Hilal’s 3-2 win over Al-Khaleej.
Simone Inzaghi’s team leapfrogged Al-Taawoun into second place to remain the closest challengers to Al-Nassr in the title fight, with the leaders set to host Al-Okhdood on Saturday.
Al-Hilal opened the scoring on 18 minutes when Mohammed Kanno met Hamad Al-Yami’s lay-off on the edge of the penalty area, his long-range shot beating Al-Khaleej goalkeeper Anthony Moris at his left-hand post.
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic doubled the lead on 39 from Malcom’s assist to leave the visitors with a mountain to climb in the second half. Al-Hilal looked to have secured all three points comfortably when Malcom made it 3-0 on 57 minutes, but Al-Khaleej had other ideas.
Joshua King’s goal on 79 minutes looked to be nothing more than a consolation, but five minutes later Al-Hilal were left sweating after Giorgos Masouras cut their lead to a single goal. The visitors’ revival was short-lived, however, with no more additions to the score.
The defeat leaves Al-Khaleej in eighth place, with three matches still to be played on Saturday.
Earlier on Friday, Al-Taawoun briefly climbed to second place in the table after an away win against Al-Kholood at Al-Hazem Stadium. Their goals came from Christopher Zambrano after 22 minutes and a William Troost-Ekong’s own goal in the 75th; Al-Taawoun ended the match with 10 men after Muteb Al-Mufarrij was sent off in stoppage time, but the three points were already secured.
Al-Hilal’s win later in the day meant Al-Taawoun dropped to third, while Al-Kholood sit in 12th.
The first match of the day saw Al-Fateh shock reigning Asian champions Al-Ahli with a 2-1 win, after falling behind at home to Valentin Atangana’s 22nd-minute goal. However, the home team turned the match around with two goals from Maria Vargas either side of half time.
The win saw Al-Fateh rise to 14th while Al-Ahli stayed in fourth.
