Lobodzinski, Potenza star at Dubai Holding SkyRun

Dubai: Number of records were broken during the Dubai Holding SkyRun 2019, which took place on Friday at Jumeirah Emirates Towers (JET), in partnership with Dubai Sports Council (DSC), International SkyRunning Federation, Vertical World Circuit, Jumeirah Group and Talise Fitness.

A new course record was set by Piotr Lobodzinski of Poland, conquering 52 floors of the iconic Jumeirah Emirates Towers in 6 minutes and 55 seconds, an improvement of 14 seconds from his time (7 minutes and 9 seconds) in the last edition.

Suzanne Walsham recorded 8 minutes and 3 seconds, an improvement of 13 seconds from her time (8 minutes and 16seconds) to complete the 16th edition of the race.

Giovanni Potenza of Italy, 75 years old, completed the race three times consecutively, setting a new record in the race’s history. Giovanni completed his first lap in 12 minutes and 19 seconds, his second lap in 13 minutes and 32 seconds and his last lap in 13 minutes and 10 seconds, averaging 13 minutes overall. Female Hiroko Shinzato of Japan, 75 years old, completed the race in 17 minutes and 13 seconds.

The 2019 race edition was joined by 27 corporates teams from key companies as well as governmental and semi-governmental organizations including Prime Minister Office of Dubai (PMO), Dubai Health Authority (DHA), Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) DU and RAK Bank.

On this occasion, Amit Kaushal, Group Chief Executive Officer at Dubai Holding said: “We are proud to witness the most successful edition of this long standing race in terms of results achieved by the runners, the number of participants; male, female, locally and internationally, the results put Dubai on the global map of such races.

“On behalf of everyone at Dubai Holding, I would like to congratulate all the participants for an exceptional show of sportsmanship and enthusiasm at this morning’s race. I would also like to congratulate the winners on their remarkable performance, which inspires us all to push our limits, reach new heights and achieve greater success.”

Commenting on the race, Marino Giacometti, President, International Skyrunning Federation, said: “I’m very pleased that the Dubai Holding Skyrun was won again by the two world champions who, with this victory, will confidently go on to the finals.

“The Vertical World Circuit athletes did us proud taking most of the top slots. It was great to see so many different countries participating - more than  50 - together with a strong local participation. We’d like to thank Dubai Holding for the excellent organisation and look forward to having the race on the 2020 Vertical World Circuit calendar, the only stop-over in the Middle East - half way between our Asian and European events.”

A record 500 runners kicked off the only official vertical race and one of the very first races during Dubai Fitness Challenge, the campaign marking the city’s most anticipated month of fitness.

Covering 1334 steps of Jumeirah Emirates Towers, the 2019 edition of Dubai Holding SkyRun ranks as the world’s 5th highest skyscraper race and the only official vertical race in the Middle East. As part of the Vertical World Circuit, Dubai Holding SkyRun puts Dubai on the map, sharing the stage with the prestigious vertical runs in some of the world’s most popular cities such as New York, London, Paris, Milan, Seoul, Beijing, Shanghai, Osaka and Hong Kong.