Cycling And Running : A Good Way To See Oman
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www.timesofoman.com Oman beckons adventure lovers as joint project ‘Oman Adventure 2005’ by the Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Sports Affairs is expected to lure many enthusiasts, who love real adventure.
This project, which is to be held from December 3 to 8, is a cycling and running event to be organised at the attractive landscape settings of the most beautiful Gulf nation.
The Oman Adventure project is a step undertaken to put Sultanate on the world map of adventure sports.
At a media briefing session at Grand Hyatt Muscat Mohammed bin Hamoud Al Toobi, the undersecretary at the Ministry of Tourism and Rashad bin Ahmed Al Hinai, the undersecretary at the Ministry of Sports Affairs stressed that the project will help in boosting tourism through adventure sports.
Both the undersecretaries hailed the cooperation between the two ministries and said that this joint venture will attract many tourists, who love to explore the terrains of the country.
Speaking on behalf of the organisers, Gerard Fusil said: “This is an event, which is first of its kind and we hope to make it an annual fixture.â€Â
Gerard, known well for his adventure exploits, said that his impression on Sultanate has compelled him to tap the potential and organise adventure events.
According to him the event will comprise cycling on mountain bike and running. The six-day race will cover an approximate distance of 300 km with participants expected to cover 50 to 60km a day.
The event will be flagged off from Yetti on December 3 and the participants will pass through Al Habubiyah via Arqi and then reach the beach of Dibab on the third day. The next destination is Qalhat via Qoran and then Saiq through Wadi Bani Khalid. The night leg will be from Saiq to the Al Mintirib Castle and will conclude at Al Areesh in the desert.
Each team will comprise two participants, a man and a woman or two men or two women.
It is learnt that 30 confirmed entries have come from France, Belgium, Germany, Australia and England, also including five entries from the Sultanate.
The competition will be divided into two categories  extreme and adventure  with the participants categories to be decided at the starting point.
The winner of the race will be the team reaching the destination first with less penalties. Gerard said that the event is certain to get good coverage in the world media with many foreign scribes expected to come for the event. Others present on the occasion were Salim Al Maamari, director-general of tourism promotion; Ibrahim Al Mahrouqi of the Ministry of Tourism, Salim Al Ghailani, director of public relations at the Sports Ministry and other officials of both ministries. |
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