13,000 join Ooredoo’s Doha Marathon

The Doha Marathon by Ooredoo has set new records in participation and community engagement and nearly doubled the number of entrants from 2023 with over 13,000 runners from 124 countries and thousands of supporters coming together during the event.
The marathon on Friday saw participants from across the globe competing in a range of distances, including an elite group of international runners, such as Mohcine Outalha, the reigning 2023 Doha Marathon Champion from Morocco, Awet Habte from Eritrea, Rebecca Cheptegei from Uganda, and Rose Chelimo from Kenya.
Distances included the full marathon, half marathon, 10km, 5km, junior 5km for teenagers, and kids 1km races, with over 1,000 participants virtually joining in on the fun.
The winners of the marathon categories, who have set new benchmarks in their respective races, are Solomon Mutai, who clocked in at 02:12:48, while in the female category, Valary Jemeli crossed the finish line at 02:23:38 in the full marathon (42.2km).
Half marathon (21.1km) Osama Zadzer (01:09:29) and Mary Nyawira Nganga (01:26:31); 10km race: Muhyadin Elmi Ismail (00:29:42) and Samantha Morales (01:26:21); 5km race: Mohamed Rageh (00:15:15) and Rebecca Hartman (00:36:08); junior 5km: Hamse Haibe Adam (00:15:05) and Aoife Glasswell (00:22:05); and fun run (under 13 years old): Taha Yessine Bhara (00:03:10) was the youngest of champions and Amy Alberts (00:03:20).
In the Al-Adaam Category, Abdulla Fahad al-Zarra crossed the finish line of the males’ full marathon at 02:47:04, while Lolwa al-Marri completed the females’ full marathon at 04:34:50; Khalifa Jumah Saeed (01:16:46) and Noor al-Jaber (01:49:16) completed the male and female half marathon, respectively.
10km race: Abdulla al-Fadala (00:37:47) and Moza al-Kuwari (01:09:19); 5km Abdulrahman Bajaidah (00:17:36) and Hessa Naaser al-Mohannadi (00:30:28); and fun run: Ibrahim al-Neama (00:03:49) and Shaikha al-Tamimi (00:03:27).
Ooredoo Qatar CEO Sheikh Ali bin Jabor bin Mohamed al-Thani said, “The Doha Marathon by Ooredoo has once again surpassed expectations, uniting athletes and supporters in a celebration of health, endurance, and community. We’re incredibly proud of each participant's achievements and the collective spirit of this event.
Mohamed Issa al-Fadala, president of the Qatar Athletics Federation, thanked Ooredoo for hosting the event, which, he said, “continues to improve year after year,” adding that the Qatar Olympic Committee has always highly supported this event, which became a key in Qatar’s sporting and community calendar, and an important tool to encourage residents to remain active.
Elite runner Solomon Mutai said, “The race was successful and the organisation was wonderful. The most important thing to me was to win the race without aiming for a better time and I am happy with the win.”
Women’s Category first-place winner Valary Jemeli from Kenya said, “The race was good and this was the first time I participated in a long time. I am happy with the wonderful atmosphere and organisation and I hope to return here again.”
The event also highlighted inclusivity, welcoming competitors with disabilities and celebrating local talent through the Al-Adaam Category, in partnership with the Social & Sport Contribution Fund (Daam).