A property director enjoyed a Dubai beach day with a difference after embarking on a remarkable 200km run in a marathon mission to raise Dh1 million to transform lives in Africa.
Sam McCone completed a 3km route from Salt and Zero Point on Kite Beach's running track 66 times in both directions in 23 hours and 30 minutes – putting him under his bold 24-hour target.
He put his best foot forward for the Sparkle Foundation, a non-profit organisation that helps underprivileged children in the East African country of Malawi.
The challenge began at 8pm on Thursday, with dozens of well-wishers turning out to cheer him on from the sidelines and contributing to his running total on the licensed UAE online charity platform, YallaGive.
“I feel absolutely exhausted but all so proud of the whole team and myself that we were able to pull it off,” Mr McCone told The National on Saturday, ahead of a gala dinner celebrating his feat. “Now we just have to get those donations in because that's what really matters.”
A ‘reasonable target’
Mr McCone, who grew up in the UAE, said he is and “always will be a Dubai kid”, and that as a very wealthy city, there is much that its residents can do to help support other places around the world. “I would love to help make that happen,” he said.
He chose The Sparkle Foundation after seeing its “incredible” work during a visit he and his wife made to Malawi in 2022. “Since then, we have grown very close with Sarah Brook, who set up and runs The Sparkle Foundation, so having this opportunity to support them and the children in this way definitely feels like the most natural and right thing to do.”
The Sparkle Foundation was established in 2021 under the umbrella of Dubai Humanitarian, a government-operated relief response hub which also supports the work of a number of charitable organisations.
Mr McCone decided to take on the challenge after completing a 100km run in March. Doubling that distance seemed like a “reasonable target”, he said. Meanwhile, the foundation needs Dh1 million to build a school on its fourth site.
“Once built, the school will support over 5,000 children and families, so if we can raise this amount not only will it be a tremendous accomplishment but it will also literally change thousands of lives,” said Mr McCone.
A big challenge
In the lead-up to the event, Mr McCone has done a lot of running, with some instances over the past six weeks in which he has run up to 100km in a single day. “The idea of these sessions is not only to get me physically prepared but also to really show my mind that I can do these kind of distances and still survive,” he said before the run.
As someone who works in real estate, Mr McCone said he is used to overcoming obstacles. “In many ways, that is what you also do when doing ultra-endurance events,” he said.
“You know that you’re up for a big challenge, be it establishing a new department in the business or running a 200km race – but you know that the only way to tackle it is by understanding the issue in the best way possible and coming up with a solution that seems to be the best fit.”
For the run, that meant maintaining a steady pace of about 9km per hour, taking in 300 to 400 calories an hour through gels, bananas, sports drinks and some solids such as potatoes and peanut butter and jam sandwiches.
How to support the cause
The donations page on YallaGive is still live for the next two months. Donating is the best way a person or business can support the cause, said Mr McCone.
“I am not the first person to attempt a challenge like this in the UAE. There have been some incredible individuals who have done some inspirational feats … but what they haven’t achieved is to raise a considerable amount for charity through these challenges. So, I am hoping to change that.”
This won’t be a one-off, either, he promised. “But I will give myself some time before I jump into the next thing, so I’ll need to come back to you on this one.”
