Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — As many as 700 participants with various disabilities from 20 specialized centers in Jeddah and Makkah took part in the 4th Let's Walk the Walk Together 4 – Gadaha Wa Gudood Marathon on Jeddah Corniche on Thursday. The marathon was organized by Jeddah Help Center with more than 1,800 spectators attending. Basmat Jood, Lahzat Amal, Red Sea Gateway Terminal, Al-Kon Al-Motawara, Jeddah International, Al-Afaq and Al-Rowad were among the schools that took part in the event. Maha Al-Juffali, director of the Help Center, said: "The marathon aims to foster great awareness and activism among the community toward the talents of people with disabilities. Its purpose is to give the young athletes an opportunity to shine and display their capabilities to the community. Marathons have great physical, mental, spiritual and social benefits and also offer an arena for people with disabilities to socially interact and maximize their potential. It is a platform to rally and call for action to all those concerned about promoting and encouraging sports among people with disabilities." Participants took part in the competition in eight categories. First Category: 500-meter walk for early intervention babies with their caregivers. Amal Nasir from the Help Center came first, followed by Joane Omar, also from the Help Center, in the second position. Serene Mishal Al-Mutairy from the Help Center came third. Leen Al-Harbi won the first place and Husam Al-Malki won the second place (the Help Center) on their own individual efforts. Second Category: 500-meter walk for participants under 9 years of age. Ro'um Al-Salami from Tender Loving Care won the race. Zein Mohammed from Ghadi Al-Moshraq came second and Salman Batayeb from the Help Center won the third position. Third Category: 1-km walk/run for all female participants above the age of 10 years. The winner was Farah Al-Ashhab from Tender Loving Care. The second and third winners were respectively Rahaf Al-Harthy and Rinad Al-Boushra, both from the Help Center. Fourth Category: 50-meter walk/run for all male participants above the age of 9 years. The winner was Saeed Al-Zahrani from Dirat Ajdadi. The second winner was Abdulrahman Al Zubaidy, also from Dirat Ajdadi, followed by Hussein Al-Sheikh from Nida'a Amal. Fifth Category: 1-km walk/run for all male participants above 10 years of age. The first position in this category went to Abdallah Bashawry from Ma'an Center. In the second position was Thamer Al Amri from Tender Loving Care, and Ibrahim Ahmad from the Help Center came third. Sixth Category: 500-meter wheelchairs. The first position in this category went to Omar Bamoussa from DCA. In the second position was Mazen Mizhari from Dirat Ajdadi and in the third position was Amin Zalloum from Tender Loving Center. Maha Bin Raba'a completed the race on her own individual effort. Seventh Category: 1-km) relay race for girls. The first position in this category went to the Orange Team: Lama Al-Douky, Deema Al-Zahrani, Sara Al-Mari and Safiya Ba'akeel from the Help Center. Eighth Category: 1-km run for all male athletes above the age of 16 years. The winners in this category were Ahmad Hakim from Dirat Ajdady, Mohammed Kuikaby from Dirat Ajddy and Abdallah Al Ghamdi from Jeddah Autism Center. The marathon was organized with support of local companies and government entities, including Zahid Group as the Golden Sponsor, SADAFCO and YAB Group as our Bronze Sponsors, and Gandour, Juffali, Al-Malki Group, Bandar Bin Rubean, Mercedes, Virgin, Uturn, Saudi Civil Defense and Saudi Red Crescent as co-sponsors.
