The eagerness and anticipation for the Spartan Middle East and Africa Championship – the regional edition of one of the world’s biggest obstacle race – is creating waves across the nation as nearly 2,500 attendees from around the world gear up to test their grit and be tested by Mleiha’s rugged desert terrain tomorrow (Friday, February 15) in three races and six categories.
The historic eco-tourism destination in Sharjah’s Mleiha region – the Mleiha Archaeological and Eco-tourism Project – is all set to host Spartans of all ages tomorrow, organising partners Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq) and Mleiha destination have confirmed.
With new age and race categories introduced by the championship this year, the scope of participation has broadened, which is expected to elevate the level of competition to a point not witnessed yet at a Spartan race in the region.
The Spartan brand has chosen Sharjah as the first city to debut the expanded ‘Age Group’ race category, which will be featured alongside the previously featured ‘Championship Elite’ under the larger ‘Beast’ category. Spartans who have topped qualifiers in Kuwait, Bahrain, Hatta, Oman, Bahrain Stadion and the Spartan Women’s races will be locking horns to claim ultimate glory tomorrow.
With four new age categories introduced this year, bringing the tally from six to ten, the championship will offer its prestigious obstacle platform to athletes as young as 14 years for the adults race and as young as 4 years for the Spartan Kids race. The diversity and inclusive spirit of the races will see Spartans beyond the age of 60 get out of their comfort zones and take up the challenge of a lifetime.
Commenting on these major milestones the event has crossed with the 2019 edition, Mahmoud Rashid Deemas, General Manager of Mleiha Archaeological and Eco-tourism project said: “Race preparations have been fully completed to ensure the safety, security and mobility of athletes and attendees. The natural mountains and dunes of Mleiha will offer the perfect backdrop for Spartan’s athletic warriors who are coming in tomorrow for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. To offer competitors as well as spectators a true taste of ancient Bedouin life, we have designed special live activations for their education and entertainment. We are proud to be hosting a global event that inspires people to challenge their limits, and build their physical and mental abilities. Hugely excited to open our doors tomorrow for the big races.”
Highlighting the level of athlete training that has gone into preparing for this world-class event, Rayyan Yacob Agha, Managing Partner at Spartan Arabia, said: “The UAE and larger region has embraced the Spartan race not only as an event but also as a way of life. This was reflected in the great response Spartan Arabia’s training sessions received over the past couple of months. We organised a series of training and workout sessions at the Flag Island in Sharjah, which attracted dozens of athletes and sports enthusiasts of all age groups. They were held until February 8, to get participants in shape and get them ready for the big races by creating real-life scenarios of the Spartan way of obstacle course racing (OCR).”
Commute from Sheraton Sharjah to Mleiha by Sharjah City SightSeeing Buses
For ease of transportation, both for the contestants and spectators, the commute to Mleiha and back is being organised by the championship’s official transportation partner – City SightSeeing Sharjah. A fleet of their charming red buses will be starting from the Sharjah Sheraton Beach Resort & Spa at 7:00am on Friday, and will bring those who opt for the service back to the resort by 4:00pm. A special discount rate of 50% is being offered on their one-day pass.
Spartan Race entered the Middle East in 2015 and has grown in the market from one race to six-event weekends in 2019, including the Mleiha event. The region has a passionate community of more than 50,000 racers, which continues to grow. Spartan’s growing presence in the Middle East has been a catalyst growth in the larger region. From here, the popularity of the races has expanded to new countries and even continents, launching the first race in South Africa in October last year. Spartan now hosts more than 250 events in more than 40 countries across the world.
The Middle East and Africa Championship will be the area’s qualifying event for the Spartan World Championship, set to take place in Lake Tahoe September 28-29 of this year.
Online bookings for the Spartan race are now open up and can be made through the event’s official website: www.spartanarabia.com.
