QNA
Adventurers Abdullah Al-Hammadi & Pierre Daniel concluded their Cycling around Qatar ride on Friday by reaching Aspire Zone after a 511-kms trip that took them exactly 3 days and 3 hours to finish.
They visited schools all around Qatar to raise awareness of road safety and promote active lifestyle. The duo started their journey on Tuesday from Katara to reach Al Dhakira at the end of day one. They followed that with visits to Al Shamal and Dukhan during the following two days before heading to Salwa then Mesaieed which they reached in the late hours of Thursday. On Friday morning in Mesaieed, they met with riders from Qatar Cyclists who accompanied them during the final leg of the journey to Aspire Zone.
Al Hammadi and Daniel focused on primary school students as they visited eight schools that included Visits to Ahmad Mansour School in Westbay and Lycée Voltaire in Al Waab, one day before launching their challenge. During their trip they visited Al Khor Independent School for boys, Al Shamal Independent School for boys, Al Shamal Independent School for girls, Dukhan Independent School for boys, Dukhan Independent School for girls and Dukhan English School. It total, they spoke to more than 700 kids and are planning to visit more schools next week.
During each visit the children showed great enthusiasm, and each school was keen on providing the best welcome for the cycling duo, with songs, poetry, flowers and sometimes with artwork reflecting the friendship between Qatar and France. "We are really happy about what we achieved during this journey. The enthusiasm shown by the boys and girls during our visits gave us the needed energy to go on and complete this challenge. It was not an easy one, especially during the final stages, as we faced strong head wind. But, we have reached our target while doing our best to raise the awareness of these future generations to issues like road safety and the health benefits of physical activity," Al Hammadi said.
The 60-year-old Qatari adventurer had recorded many achievements in the past in the field of adventure and endurance sports. That includes a 4300-km cycling trip from the north of Japan to the south in 2017, which took him 27 days to complete. He sees that age is never a limit. "You can exercise at any age. You just need to start, it is always the hardest step. Even if you dont do any kind of sport, it is not impossible to change, all you need to do is to make exercising an important part of your daily routine and you will reap the results sooner or later. Not only on health and career levels, but also on all aspects of life," Al Hammadi added.
Cycling has been one of the fastest growing sports among the community in Qatar, thanks to the huge efforts of the Qatar Cycling Federation and Qatar Cyclists center, either through the various community events they organize for men and women or through high-level local competitions. "In the recent years we have seen more and more men and women of all ages coming and trying this sport, and many of them are now taking part in weekly rides and activities organized by Qatar Cyclists and also in QCF competitions, it is amazing, the future looks bright to this sport in Qatar."Even though Daniel recorded an unprecedented achievement earlier this year, when he made a 477-km solo trip around Qatar on foot, he still thinks that Cycling Around Qatar was a very special achievement for him. "My run around Qatar was about going for the impossible and showing everyone that they can achieve anything they want as human beings, but this time I did it for the community, and I am happy that me and Abdullah achieved our goal," Daniel said.
"Each visit to every school really touched me. The great welcoming from the students with flowers, poetry and songs. That curious look in their eyes wanting to know everything about the bicycles. Their brilliant questions when we talked about road safety. Their effort to show the friendship between France and Qatar through simple and beautiful art work. It meant a lot for me and It was an incredible journey. I am happy that I gave something back to the beautiful community of Qatar, with whom me and my family have lived for 10 years," he added.
Cycling Around Qatar was sponsored and supported by Katara, Aspire Zone, Qatar Cycling Federation, Qatar Cyclists, Rasen Sports, Q-soft, mbm transport and Silverfox communication."