People from across the kingdom were pretty in pink on Saturday as they flocked to the Bahrain International Circuit to help Think Pink Bahrain break a world record, writes Mai Al Khatib-Camille.

As the sun beat down the volunteers took to the track as part of the breast cancer awareness campaigners’ Longest Ribbon Challenge heralding the start of an annual global bid to save lives.

The community and fundraising members had spent the past 12-months tying up more than 105,400 pieces of 20cm rosy-hued satin ribbons to loop around the Sakhir Formula One track in order to create a fun new way to spread the message of early detection.

More than 1,000 people joined Think Pink Bahrain’s fundraising efforts and after standing on the circuit for more than an hour while everyone got in place to carry the tiny ribbons that formed the pink chain, the record was not just broken, it was smashed!

The previous record for having the longest ribbon was held by the Caroline Foundation (Ireland) in Greystones, County Wicklow on the May, 11, 2014. It was 8,500m. Bahrain’s record was 13kms 124ms and 65cm, as signed off by official surveyors Terna.

“We are still on cloud nine and it doesn’t seem real to be honest,” said the charity’s founder Jules Sprakel. “It’s been one year of preparation, eight months of seeking sponsorship and six months of tying ribbons. So many people gave up their time and support, both in a financial capacity or in kind - everyone went that extra kilometre, literally.

“At the end of the day, that’s what it is all about. It’s not what people did or how much they gave; it was the end goal of breast cancer awareness, community engagement and all pulling together for the same reason.”

The community and team tied all 527 packets of ribbons, backed by an official report from three independent adjudicators.

Terna announced the successful record attempt at the end of the ribbon and the two others concurred. The two independent law firms, Zubi Partners and Elham Law, officially verified the record attempt as one piece. Their reports play a critical role, as do all the sponsors both financially and in kind.

“The team and its supporters and 827 volunteers worked really hard,” added Jules. “There are too many individuals to thank - there was nothing glamorous about the work we did to achieve this milestone and the kingdom really stepped in. It feels great to live within such a community!”

The fundraising team had been setting up days before the event to ensure everything ran smoothly on Saturday. The team and volunteers manually set the lengths around the track and placed the ribbons on a massive wooden bobbin.

Members of the BIC, Think Pink volunteers and support teams, including Cartech, the team that provided the track and trailer to roll the ribbon out, and other workers helped with the manual roll out on the track.

Jules explained: “It’s a big track and we looped the ribbon twice, plus, I believe five laps of the straight near the Paddock Area.

“This really could not have been possible without the support of many and our hosts the BIC were fabulous with us.

“It was the ideal venue to hold this milestone achievement for the kingdom. I would say though, I don’t think we fully processed the enormity when deciding on this challenge. However, it was smooth because of so many people doing it together, believing in us as a team and charity and believing in their capacity to get things done.

“We need dreamers in this world who think big. Nothing is impossible if you believe in what you are doing and do it with good intentions. We are truly thankful for everyone in the community who believed in us.”

People of all ages and nationalities, sporting pink shirts featuring the #howfarforpink statement, began flooding the paddock area around 3pm to register to carry the ribbon on the track. Several banks, businesses, schools and societies had rallied their own teams of volunteers to help in the record breaking challenge.

A DJ played uplifting beats while people wearing pink feathers in their hair, pink baseball caps and bandanas and carrying pink Think Pink totes filled with bottles of water to stay hydrated during the event, caught up with friends and chanted their positive messages.

Even before the challenge was completed people started celebrating and dancing with joy to the fact that so many members of Bahrain’s community had united for such a worthwhile cause.

Jules said: “I think the awareness was second to none. It was not just about the ribbon, it’s the conversation around the ribbon that was important. Breast cancer awareness was our true goal.”

At 4pm, the pink parade continued with buses full of happy people being dropped off at different points around the track. There was a volunteer at every 15m to carry the ribbon and coolers full of cold water bottles at every section to make sure everyone stayed hydrated and as comfortable as could be in the sweltering heat.

British ambassador to Bahrain Simon Martin and his wife Sophie were amongst the notable VIPs who volunteered their time to help carry part of the ribbon chain on the day.

And the event was especially meaningful to the Bhatia family who attended the event together and rallied a group of friends to join the event as part of the J Bhatia Enterprises (JBE) team.

The company, established in 1998, is a family business involved in the supply of corporate and business gifts and promotional give-aways. They supplied Think Pink with 527 packets of ribbons for the challenge.

Bharti and her husband Jayant, company partners, were joined by their daughter, Ruhi Menon, who lives in Tubli.

It’s a cause that is near and close to their hearts. Bharti said: “Breast Cancer has affected many women in our family, women as young as 23. Although breast cancer was a taboo subject in the past, today we have women in the family who have battled with breast cancer and are strong survivors who are living their lives to the fullest.”

For the initiative, JBE had more than 20 people registered in their team.

Ruhi added: “Seeing a family member go through cancer makes you feel incredibly helpless. Of course, we provide moral support and make sure that we are there for them through it all, but that is as much as one can do, and this disease is just far bigger and more frightening than that. Supporting the charity is a way for us to stand with everyone that is battling cancer, the ones that beat it, and even the ones who lost their lives to it.

“Also, we live in a community where women (and men) are afraid to talk about things like cancer. I personally know women who battled cancer and were too afraid to talk about what they were going through, and this is the time where they needed the most support.

“It is imperative that we encourage people to understand the magnitude of this disease and the impact it has on the people suffering, both physically and mentally.

“We need to create a support system to show cancer patients that they have people to talk to.

“The more awareness we create through the events that Think Pink organises, then the more we encourage people to start going for regular health check-ups and leading healthier lifestyles, and even openly discussing the difficulties that they might be facing without being afraid to.

“Think Pink is our ticket to raising that awareness. It brings the community together for a worthy cause. If we all do a little bit, as a whole we can go a long way.”

After the record was broken, the paddock turned into a party atmosphere with volunteers and the charity team dancing and dining around the vending area. There was also a mini-fun fair for children with a bouncy castle, giant chess board and other entertainment.

The funds gathered from the event and from other Think Pink activities that will be held throughout October at different locations on the island will go towards a set of projects to support the charities future endeavours.