Bengaluru-Based Man Runs 104 Km Barefoot To Address Climate Change In Dubai

Indian ultra-marathoner Aakash Nambiar elated several users on the internet after covering all the important Dubai landmarks in a limited time while barefoot. The 34-year-old marathoner ran a total of 104 kms in over 17 hours and 20 minutes. He did so while running barefoot on the hot Middle Eastern soil. Nambiar is a Bengaluru-based Keralite who is striving to continue the momentum that was created by the COP28, the climate change conference held in early December. In his marathon covering deserts, beaches and city scrapers, Nambiar met several community members and discussed how everyone could together make a difference when it came to climate change.

Taking to Instagram, he wrote, “A 100KM inside Dubai, the city of skyscrapers!! The run started after the sun rise from Love, Lake to finish at the tallest building in the world Burj Khalifa covering Palm Jumeirah, Burj Al Arab, Kite Beach, Jumeirah Beach, La Mer beach, Etihad museum and Museum of future with a total of ~ 104KMs. I wanted to address the issue of climate change and bring some awareness to common people and the best medium for me is through running to tell “WE ARE RUNNING OUT OF TIME” to act. Also to promote Healthy and sustainable lifestyle I chose to run barefoot the entire distance except the last few stretches at night.”

He further added, “Why Dubai? Because the COP28 just got over here and we have maybe 5 years left to limit global warming to 1.5°C and still not many are not aware of it.”

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Several users on the internet have reacted to the marathoner’s impressive feat. A person even said that the runner is a great person in real life as he met him during his run. He said, “We met Aakash at Al Qudra. Nice guy bravo.” Next, another user also wanted to make some contribution towards a greener society. He hilariously said, “That’s great…I hope my company provides work from home so that I can walk to work from home so that I can walk to work from my bedroom… I want to contribute towards a green city as well”. One user made sure to remind everyone that the runner ran over a hundred kilometres barefoot. He commented, “Barefoot, everyone needs to understand it’s important”. Another simply wrote, “Oh my gawd!”

Popularly known as ‘Barefoot Mallu’ for his unique way of running, Nambiar started his run from the beautiful Love Lake in Al Qudra on Saturday. He then covered other landmarks in Dubai including the Palm Jumeirah, Burj Al Arab and the Etihad Museum. He finally made it to the Burj Khalifa by midnight. As per the Khaleej Times, this is what the Indian marathoner had to say about running on the street – “I feel alive when I run on streets and meet people. I wish to spread my message on environmental conservation.”

Being new to Dubai, Aakash Nambiar had to stick to Google Maps for navigation. This often led to him ending up on streets and freeways that could not be crossed on foot. Speaking to the portal, he said, “Navigation was an unexpected challenge. I wish for pedestrian walkways on highways and main roads.”

On his journey, Nambiar met a group of cyclists who were impressed with his efforts in spreading sustainable awareness. Nambiar also said that he was impressed by the friendliness of the local people and the world-class facilities for pedestrians.