Middle East’s first long-distance...

UAE’s Challenge Sir Bani Yas Island event to include wildlife safaris and kayaking

Triathlon tourism is on the rise, and the Middle East is set to make its grand debut in April 2025 with the region’s first long-distance triathlon.

Announced in September 2024, the inaugural Challenge Sir Bani Yas Island is proving so popular that organisers have unveiled new accommodation, transport options, races, challenges and activities for all the family to enjoy.

From 6-7 April, some 3,000 athletes from more than 70 countries (and counting) are expected to descend upon Abu Dhabi’s eco-tourism island, bringing with them family and friends to enjoy its diverse offerings.

Formed millions of years ago as a salt dome peak, the UAE’s largest natural island lies 8km off Abu Dhabi's western shore and combines a stunning coastline and turquoise waters with mountains and desert dunes.

Today, Sir Bani Yas Island is home to the Arabian Wildlife Park filled with 17,000 animals including the rarest in the Arabian Gulf

Sir Bani Yas Island

Alongside the main iron man distance (225km) race that includes a 3.8km swim, 180km cycle and 42.2km run, the event features middle- and Olympic-distance triathlons, which further serve as qualifiers for UAE residents aiming to compete in the 2025 World Triathlon Championships in Australia.

There will also be community races for participants of all ages and abilities, including shorter triathlon-style trials as well as other activities. Challenges that make the most of the natural setting will include beach games and kayak sprints.

Beyond competing, guests can explore the island through guided tours, including one that takes in some of the 42 archaeological sites here, from 20-million-year-old salt domes to a Christian monastery dating to 600AD, the oldest one of its kind in the UAE.

Meanwhile, guided nature walks and 4x4 wildlife safaris spotlight the 17,000 wildlife that roam freely on the island, from towering giraffes to mountain gazelles and the rare Arabian oryx.

Among other ways to explore Sir Bani Yas, guests can ride an Arabian horse across desert dunes, kayak along the mangrove-rimmed waterways, or take to the sea on a paddleboard or waterbike to spy sea turtles and dolphins. Sunset DJ sessions are also part of the mix.

The journey to the island from Abu Dhabi takes two hours and 20 minutes, and organisers have introduced dedicated ferries to run at regular times

With accommodations already sold out at Anantara Sir Bani Yas’ luxury properties, including the Al Yamm Villa Resort with its traditional Bedouin barasti dwellings, organisers have expanded options to Al Dhannah City on Abu Dhabi’s western coast, around 20km from the ferry terminal.

Kayaking through the mangroves on Sir Bani Yas Island

These include the luxurious Danat Jebel Dhanna Resort, with its waterfront villas, white-sand beaches and a swim-up bar, as well as two four-star properties, the beachside Dhafra Beach Hotel and Remal Hotel, located in the heart of the city. Room rates start from AED500.

For more than two decades, Challenge Family has been running world-class long and middle distance triathlons, with 30 events taking place worldwide, from Gallipoli in Turkiyë to Gunsan in South Korea.

Already home to the Abu Dhabi and Dubai marathons (which draw participants from 145 countries), as well as the Oman Desert Marathon and Saudi’s Neom Supertri League (the world’s fastest triathlon series), the Gulf’s race calendar is increasingly drawing participants and their families to the region.

Coupled with a growing roster of elite events accompanied by big-ticket entertainment, such as the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and Jeddah, the 2029 Asian Winter Games in Neom’s Trojena and the FIFA World Cup in 2034 in Saudi, tourism in the Middle East is expected to grow by 8.7% by 2030, compared to just 3.3% globally, according to the World Economic Forum.

For more information, visit www.challenge-sirbaniyas.com

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