Emirates Steel wins the fifth Bloomberg Square Mile Relay in Dubai

The first race of the 2020 Bloomberg Square Mile Relay Global Race Series kicked off in Dubai yesterday with Emirates Steel named as the ‘fastest firm in the city for a second year running with a time of 1:00:48 following their first place finish. Over 1,000 runners from Dubai’s biggest companies were on the specially designed one-mile (1.6km) course around the iconic Gate Building in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) all competing for that prestigious title.

The yearly event, which now takes place in 12 cities across the world, is a key fixture in Dubai’s calendar and promotes team-building and bonding amongst colleagues in a fun, yet challenging environment.

Eslam Ramadan, team captain of the winning team from Emirates Steel received the coveted winner’s trophy on stage at the awards presentation and said: “The Bloomberg Square Mile Relay is such an amazing race and we can’t believe we won for the second year running, especially with an improved time – this is a bonus for us. We’ve been training smarter this year with some of my colleagues also doing triathlons and Ironman’s.”

Runners jostling for position at the start of Bloomberg Square Mile Relay Dubai 2020.

Emirates Steel were closely followed by Bloomberg in second place, and JLL in third, who were also the Fastest Mixed Team. The Fastest Female Team on the night was Petrofac International, Survana Choudhari team captain of the Fastest Female Team said: “It feels amazing to have won, such a good event with so much good energy, and it’s great we are running for a cause. We all feel very motivated – we’ve been doing lots of training together and we’re so proud to go home with the award.”

The race culminated in celebrations in the Race Village which saw a high-spirited atmosphere with runners, supporters and the local community enjoying the music and complimentary hospitality, before heading to Vibe for the official after party.

The significant growth and popularity over the years, combined with the inclusion of the event in the top 10 of the Dubai Sports Council’s ‘Sports Events Ranking System’, is the biggest testament to the success of the race since its launch in Dubai in 2016.

Having adopted sustainable practices with a policy of no single-use plastic on race night, including the introduction of sustainable race medals and runner t-shirts made from recycled plastic bottles, in addition to the collective objective of making an actionable impact in the society through The Extra Mile charity initiative, the event has set an enormous benchmark for years to come.

Ahead of participating, all runners were asked to select and run for one of two causes put forward by Emirates Red Crescent, The Extra Mile partner. The cause with the quickest average time was Disaster Relief receiving 25% of each team’s race entry fee, amounting to AED123,290. Emirates Red Crescent will now use this donation to deliver a year-long program to address this cause.

Emirates Steel became the first company to retain the Fastest Overall Team award in Dubai.

Benjamin Grolimund, Regional Manager, Middle East & Africa – Financial Products, Bloomberg L.P., said: “We are proud to have brought the race to Dubai for another year and we would like to thank everyone involved in making the Bloomberg Square Mile Relay race a tremendous success yet again. Congratulations to Emirates Steel for winning the title and to all the participating teams who competed in the 2020 race. We are already looking forward to next year’s race and continuing our efforts in keeping the corporate world moving.”

Other main sponsors included Venue Partner DIFC, Health & Wellness Partner Al Zahra Hospital Dubai, Hotel and Hospitality Partner Crowne Plaza Dubai, Hydration Partner Mai Dubai, Media Partner Elevision, After Party Venue Partner Vibe, ECO Partner DGrade, Fitness Partner Fitness First, and After Party Drinks Partner MMI.

Alya AlZarouni, Executive Vice President – Operations, DIFC Authority commented: “We are pleased with the increased interest seen this year in the Bloomberg Square Mile Relay, demonstrating the enduring significance of the event. Bringing this event back to the DIFC for the fifth consecutive year reflects our dedication to promoting a healthy and active lifestyle. We take great pride in supporting major exciting events that encourages team-building, camaraderie and friendly competition as these elements are all important to fostering a dynamic and enabling environment for Dubai’s business community, and reinforcing the DIFC’s position not just as the ideal place to work, but also as the place where people want to live and play.”