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Adrenaline junkies are set to run, climb and crawl their way to victory on Friday in an intense obstacle course at the Bahrain International Endurance Village in Sakhir, writes Mai Al Khatib-Camille.
Contestants will tackle a range of hurdles including rolling mud, rope climbing, slip wall, tyre flipping and other challenges.
More than a thousand people have registered to take part in the XDubai Spartan Race Sprint Bahrain 2016, say organisers. Rayyan Yacob Agha, MENA managing director, Spartan Race, said: “Bahrain’s desert terrain offers a particularly exciting opportunity for athletes to test their skills in a unique environment.
“We will have many challenging obstacles including our infamous barbwire, Hercules hoist, cargo net, trademark fire jump and much more!
“Our mission is to make obstacle course racing a global lifestyle and Olympic sport whilst ripping people off their couches and getting them into the outdoors for a fitter life.”
The Bahrain event will feature the Spartan Sprint (5km/15+ obstacles) as well as Junior Spartan for ages four to 14.
Hamza Farooq, 24, who works in social media and marketing, from Budaiya, is excited to be competing with his friends. He said: “I’ve spent months training and motivating my friends to take part.”
The competition will start with the Elite heat at 8am, with up to 250 racers going off the line every 15 minutes until 2pm over the 5km course. The Junior Race will be held from 10am to noon, which will cover 1km of obstacles.
Elite competitors will have the chance of winning $4,500 in prizes while all participants will receive Olympic-style medals along with limited edition T-shirts.
Participants can enter individually or as a team. Elite entry costs $147, the open challenge $112 and the junior race costs $45, plus processing fee.
For more details, visit www.spartanarabia.com
