Champion athlete Youssef Rochdi only set foot in Abu Dhabi to walk down the aisle – but his passion for running has made him go the distance.
The super-fit American, a winner of a host of international titles, moved to the capital in 2016 to marry his partner, who lived in the emirate.
He intended to switch back to the US soon after, but quickly felt at home in the UAE.
Something was missing, however, as he explored the city and found a distinct lack of "running vibes".
He discovered the Zayed Sports City running track, where he ran alone for two weeks.
“There was no one there, just a few people on the football pitch,” said Rochdi, 37.
“This made me sad back then, how people do not run in this city. So I had an idea to develop and promote training in the community.
“I started making small announcements on my Facebook page: 'I am running at this time in this place who wants to join me?'”
He soon found many willing to follow in his footsteps as a one-man band steadily grew.
As more people joined the ranks, Rochdi received support from community and sporting groups that helped him to organise runs and training sessions.
Spurred on by the backing, he founded Abu Dhabi Running Team.
The club now boasts 2,000 members and is the official training group for the Adnoc Abu Dhabi Marathon.
On any given weekday, Rochdi is joined by dozens of residents – adults, teens and children – for free training sessions that start with warm-up laps, stretches and interval runs.
Runners divide themselves into groups based on skill levels, so they can complete sessions at a comfortable speed.
Every Friday morning the team also goes out from the start of dawn to run long distances that range between 10 kilometres and a half marathon.
Rochdi likes to take a scenic route – often gliding past the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque on to the Arabian Gulf track leading to Al Hudayriat Island, or along the Abu Dhabi Corniche – to attract more enthusiasts to join in.
“The Abu Dhabi Running Team has helped a lot of people in the community, including heavy smokers and obese people who could barely run two kilometres when they started, and now they are running half marathons,” he said.
Running transforms lives
One of those members is Rania Abbas, a mother of three, who has set her sights on running the full distance of 42km at the upcoming Adnoc Abu Dhabi Marathon in November.
It is a far cry from when she first laced up her running boots.
"I was a heavy smoker and I did not have a healthy lifestyle," said the Egyptian, who works for the Singaporean ambassador to the UAE.
“But since I started running I adopted a different lifestyle.”
Her first motivation was to run 10km at the Adnoc Marathon in 2019.
“I heard about the Abu Dhabi Running Team through social media. I could not finish 400 metres during my first training with them.
“But Coach Youssef believed in me and told me I could do more, so I kept pushing myself and learning from the team.”
Ms Abbas, 42, managed to run the 10km distance in 2019.
“I was amazed by the result. It was the first 10km run in my whole life.”
Since then she has participated in 25 races of different distances, and quit smoking,
"I had been smoking since I was 22, but when I started to achieve in running, I did not want anything to tamper with my performance."
Chef finds ingredients for a healthier life
Another success story is Imad Al Shaar, a chef from Syria.
Since tasting the food that he prepares is part of his job, the 33-year-old found it tough not to pile on weight.
“But when I joined the running group eight months go, I started to see a change in my body and my life.
"In eight months, I lost more than 11 kilograms."
A long and winding journey to fulfilment
Rochdi knows only too well the value of having a mentor when pursuing sporting goals.
He embarked on his own path to success in his early teens in his home city of Casablanca.
He was 15 when he took part in first “serious run", a 6km cross country qualifications race for a national championship.
“I won third place in the qualifications, and I was nominated to represent my school at the championship," he said.
However, when it came to the big championship race, he “did not do well”.
“So I was disappointed and I quit running and stuck to kickboxing – until I broke my nose," he said.
His brother was a running champion at the time, so he decided to go to him for guidance.
“There is a five-year age gap between us, and he was very serious about running, so he gave me tips and I started to focus more on the sport.”
In 2000, he qualified to represent Morocco in the World Schools Cross Country Championship in Boston.
“After that I entered a lot of competitions in the US and enrolling in runs every weekend; so we had the chance to shine," he said.
“First I was just competing for my club, Westchester Road Runner, until I got the US citizenship in 2007 and started presenting New Jersey in state competitions.”
Personal achievement now takes a back seat to watching others achieve their ambitions as Abu Dhabi Running Team continues to pick up pace.
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
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Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Company Profile
Name: JustClean
Based: Kuwait with offices in other GCC countries
Launch year: 2016
Number of employees: 130
Sector: online laundry service
Funding: $12.9m from Kuwait-based Faith Capital Holding
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More on animal trafficking
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
