Pocari Sweat virtual run to be held on July 3

Dubai Sports Council in new initiative to promote health activity

Dubai: The Dubai Sports Council (DSC) has teamed up with Japanese sports drinks giant Pocari Sweat to organise a virtual run, open to every member of the household, on July 3.

Named the ‘Pocari Sweat 10K Run’, participants are free to choose between a 5km and 10km run and allowed to create their own unique fun course, making use of the indoor and if permitted by authorities, outdoor space in and around their home and community. For a change, they can even run on a smart or traditional treadmill.

The run is open to participants of any ages and abilities from across the world, provided it is held as per Dubai time, from 12:01 am to 11:59 pm on July 3.

Participants can choose from five categories – Male and Female for 5km, Male and Female for 10km and People of Determination for 5km, and there will be handsome prizes on offer for the top three finishers in each of these categories. There will also be a special prize for the person who designs the best course for his or her run.

To make a claim for those prizes, participants will have to make sure they first download the DSC’s official app, which is available on both Android and Apple platforms (https://dscmobileapp.ae/DSCAPP/api/download), and sign in with the credentials they have used to register on the DSC website.

Once logged into the app on race day, users will be seeing a ‘Start Pocari Sweat Challenge’ button. Click on it, and they will be taken to the ‘Smart Health – Running’ screen, which will show such details as the distance, speed, and calories burnt.

The application detects the user’s body movement through different sensors on the smartphone to calculate the speed and distance, so participants, once they click on start, will need to make sure they have the device on their person – in their pockets or in an armband.

The run will need to be completed in one stretch and the application will notify users once they have reached their target. The participant will need to click the ‘Save’ button to save the activity and then they can compare their time with other participants on the leaderboard.

The participants should then upload a photo or screenshot of their result to their Instagram page, and tag #PocariSweat10KRun, making sure their account setting is public so that the organisers can see their participation entry.

If the participants do not have an Instagram page, they can also email a screenshot of their result and the organisers will upload it for them. The cut-off time for uploading results and tagging #PocariSweat10KRun is midnight on run day.

To be eligible for the ‘Best Course’ design, participants will need to make a video of the course, explain it or draw it, and upload it to their Instagram page, tagging #PocariSweat10KRun.

Registration is free for everyone through the DSC’s official website (https://www.dubaisc.ae/POCARISWEAT10KRUN) till 11:59 pm of July 1.