MUSCAT: Omani runners Ghaith al Saidi and Saleh al Saidi claimed the top two spots of the 47-km third stage of Oman Desert Marathon (ODM) 2024 ahead of defending champion Rachid El Morabity of Morocco in third place.
Ghaith clocked five hours two minutes and 39 seconds to finish first as his brother Saleh came second with a timing of 5:10:29. Multiple marathon champion Rachid came just third in 5:10:39.
The third stage was the lone night stage of the four-stage ODM in its ninth edition being held at the golden sands of Bidiya from January 20 to 23.
While there was light during the race, runners could enjoy the beauty of the golden sands of the desert and the sunset. Once it got dark, the night stage was visible due to the lights set along the course, each light was visible from the previous one. At this stage, runners were already more acclimatised to the desert and the backpack was less heavy. However, the continuous ascents and descents of the stage made it challenging.
When the race reached 5 km, Julio de Campos Nieto from the Netherlands pulled out due a knee sprain suffered during the ascend of one of the dunes.
‘BEAUTIFUL DESERT’
“I have never been in such a beautiful desert before. In my 15 years of participating in races, I have never seen anything like this,” Simon Wergan, a 60-year-old British runner, said.
Ukraine’s Evgenii Glyva (5:17:17) was fourth followed by Oman’s Khalid al Jabri (6:13:04) and Hani al Saidi (6:14:42) in fifth and sixth positions, respectively.
On the women’s side, seasoned marathon runners Aziza Raji (6:56:35) and Aziza El Amrany (6:56:35) from Morocco took the top two positions while Veronique Messina (7:49:56) of France was third in the night stage.
In the 52-km stage on day two, Rachid El Morabity came first followed by Saleh al Saidi (6:07:43) and Evgenii Glyva (6:23:13).
Omanis Gaith al Saidi (6:35:50) and Khalid al Jabri (7:33:37) were fourth and fifth, respectively.
Moroccan duo of Aziza El Amrany (8:31:06) and Aziza Raji (8:31:07) were top two in the women’s section. French runner Veronique Messina (9:04:37) finished third.
In the 42-km opening day stage on January 20, Rachid topped with a timing of 3:18:42.
Oman’s Saleh al Saidi (3:19:29) was second followed by Rachid’s brother Mohammed El Morabity (3:20:58) in third.
Ukraine’s Evgenii Glyva (4:06:25) came fourth ahead of Oman’s Khalid al Jabri (4:14:32).
In women’s section, Aziza Raji (5:02:06) was top ahead of her team-mate Aziza El Amrany (5:28:49).
Launched in 2013, the Oman Desert Marathon is a self-sufficient 165 km race with four stages, including a night stage, across the spectacular Omani landscape and its varieties, from the Oasis Al Wasil, crossing the desert to Al Jawharat Resort.
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
