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Yellow duck race for charity

Racing yellow rubber duckies may not seem like an act of charity, but Yas Waterworld has managed to raise tens of thousands of dirhams doing just that.

The water adventure park raised Dh60,000 for the Make a Wish Foundation by inviting visitors to ‘adopt’ a little yellow rubber duck through their website, at a cost of Dh30, throughout September.

Hundreds of individuals and companies took part, with over 2,000 ducks “adopted”. On Saturday morning they all entered the Yas Waterworld Duck Race.

The money raised will be donated to the non-profit organisation that grants wishes to children between the ages of three to 18 years old, who live with life-threatening medical conditions.

“We are so honoured to host such a great event that involved the community for a worthy cause,” said Yas Waterworld general manager Mike Oswald. “I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to this great initiative and everyone who attended the race not only to have a great time but to be part of this amazing event,” he added.

Upon online adoption, each duck received a serial number, which was attached to the duck itself for the race. All 2,000 rubber ducks were dropped into the Yadi Yas wave river and, after a 15-minute race to the finish line, where the “river” pushed the little ducks forward, one little duck emerged victorious.

The happy winner got a serious handshake, and two annual passes to Yas Waterworld and tickets to Ferrari World Abu Dhabi.

Everyone else who participated in the race got discounted rates at Yas Waterworld rides for the rest of the day. The park has decided to keep the little yellow rubber ducks, which may be entered into a different charity event in the future. -silvia@khaleejtimes.com