Ooredoo Maldives has kicked off the ‘Ooredoo Atholhu Dhuvun’ on Friday afternoon.

With over 5,000 runners from across the Maldives, the telecommunications giant launched the run, in commemoration of its 15th anniversary.

Atholhu Run is the first of its kind virtual run being held across the scatter of islands and is part of the telecommunications provider’s celebratory events for fifteen successful years with the people of Maldives.

Ooredoo revealed that the run aims to promote “togetherness through sport” while maintaining the required social distancing which is crucial during this period of Covid-19 crisis.

The company described the run to be an opportunity to feature the beautiful running trails across the scatter of atolls comprising the island nation.

“Atholhu Run” features runners representing their respective atolls who will update social media with live photos and videos of the run across their route within their respective atoll. They will complete 15 kilometers across 20 atolls and the event also features a five-kilometer category that allows the public to participate virtually as well. Individuals aged six and above may participate in the five-kilometer run virtually from their homes or a nearby running track.

The telecom provider recommends individuals to use the running applications Strava, Garmin Connect, Runtastic, Nike Run Club and Runkeeper to complete the run.

The telecom provider invited the general public to join the run and support runners from their respective atolls, bearing in mind to follow the required social distancing instructions in their areas.

Participants may submit screenshots of their completed run route from their choice of apps to the Atholhu Dhuvun portal to claim their virtual medals which may be upgraded to a physical medal later on.

Further, Ooredoo also offers giveaways to participants who share Atholhu Dhuvun photos on social media with the hashtags #OoredooAtholhuDhuvun and #MavesDhuvan to stand a chance to win an iPhone SE.

In addition, 100 lucky runners who finish the event will be conferred a voucher worth MVR 100 from Haitus Fresh, a partner of the event.

Five finishers who upload their virtual medals on social media also stand a chance to win a voucher priced at MVR 1,000 from The Marathon Shop, or a dinner for two from Medmex Bistro.

The general public and participants representing the atolls have been urged to strictly adhere to Covid-19 safety regulations and guidelines and to ensure social distancing is followed during the 48-hour event.