Barwa Bank is supporting Ziyad Rahim, its head of Market Risk, as he attempts to set three new Guinness World Records in ultra-distance running.

As part of his attempt, Ziyad will be raising awareness for two charities based in the GCC region.

An ultra-marathon is a distance that is longer than the standard 42.2km marathon and events usually range from 50km to 100-milers and even multi-day events over varied terrain.

Ziyad’s multiple world record attempt, dubbed the 777 Challenge, will begin in South America on January 26 and conclude in Africa on March 15. In between the two events, Ziyad will participate in ultra-marathon events covering North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and Antarctica.

The current world record for completing an ultra-marathon on all seven continents, set in 1999, is 267 days. Ziyad aims to break this record and is targeting only 48 days.

Commenting on the challenge, Ziyad admits that it will be a tough task to run seven ultra-marathons within seven weeks. He thinks travelling and jet lag will be the biggest challenges.

Due to work and family commitments, most of his journeys will be over the weekend.  He went on to say, “Just like my record-breaking attempt last year, I will be flying between 10 and 20 hours one way over the weekend, running an ultra and immediately flying back to get to office.”

Another challenge facing the long-distance runner is the constant variation in temperatures.

Ziyad is now collaborating with Pakistan Welfare Forum, a Qatar-based charity that provides education and medical treatment for life-threatening diseases as well as financial assistance for poor families in Qatar (http://www.pwfqatar.org/).

He is also raising awareness for a UAE-based charity, Maria Cristina Foundation (http://mariacristinafoundation.org/), which provides education and medical assistance to underprivileged children in the slums of
Dhaka, Bangladesh.

 

 

 

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