Meet the man who swam from Al Seef to Dubai Water Canal
dubai — Egyptian expat Shehab Allam has already won countless swimming championships, but he wanted to do something ‘different’. So, wearing his monofin, he swam 25km from Al Seef to Dubai Water Canal, hoping to smash a world record.
The 30-year-old Dubai resident completed the distance in five hours and 55 minutes, and he believes he has successfully broken the current world record for long-distance swimming with a fibreglass monofin.
Speaking to Khaleej Times after the recent achievement, Allam said: “I wanted to do something different… something that would be in the history books. I am proud of what I did in Dubai. The entire swim was against the current.
“Since the swim was against the current, I was losing a lot of energy. Your muscles start to get to its maximum and you have to push harder.”
I wanted to do something different… something that would be in the history books. I am proud of what I did in Dubai.” Shehab Allam, professional long-distance swimming champion
Global champ
Allam, a professional long-distance swimming champion, has always loved being in the water.
“I had my first tryst with a swimming pool at age three. I have been a professional classic swimmer since the age of 10, and started monofin swimming at age 12,” he said. With his passion for the sport, he went on to win sev
eral championship titles. He topped the Arab Championship from 2006 to 2008 in several countries including Jordan, Tunisia, Syria, and Egypt.
Now, he shares his expertise in freediving, fitness, and first aid. He currently works as a swimming and fitness instructor in the UAE.
Allam called his latest feat in Dubai one of his biggest challenges. He trained regularly for two and a half months to prepare for it. “I was training six days a week in the gym, pool, and the open sea.” He said it helped that all of Dubai’s beaches are beautiful.