Dr. Mariam Saleh Binladen, a Saudi dentist and humanitarian, set a new record that added to her tally of world records, while crossing the Dubai Creek and the Dubai Water Canal, swimming a total distance of 24 kilometres (km) on Friday, 10th March, 2017.

The special event was held in collaboration with the Dubai Sports Council, the Dubai Maritime City Authority, the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority and the Dubai Police and Marine Rescue. This event, which is part of Dr. Mariam's effort to Syrian refugees, was attended by a delegation from the Dubai Sports Council and other supporting partners, as well as marine safety, rescue and co-ordination teams.

Dr. Mariam's bid began at 5.00am on Friday, starting from the canal's Dubai Creek entrance in the Al Shindagha area of Dubai's historic district. She achieved the feat at 2.10pm, finishing at Al Ghubaiba Station next to the Four Seasons Hotel.

While swimming for 9 hours and 10 minutes, Dr. Mariam battled strong currents at the entrance and mouth of the canal, while passing through some of Dubai's most striking tourism sites.

After reaching the finish line, Dr. Mariam expressed her gratitude for the huge support that she received, and said, "I want to extend my warmest appreciation and gratitude to  Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince, for his gracious patronage of the event, and to the team members who worked really hard over the past month to make this great event a memorable success."

"I would also like to thank all the people who turned up just to cheer and encourage me throughout the day. I am thrilled and delighted to become the first person to complete a 24km swim along the wonderful, yet challenging, Dubai Water Canal," added Dr. Mariam

source : gulfnews