Suhail Al Zarooni
Suhail Al Zarooni (Arabic: سهيل الزرعوني) is a UAE businessman and collector of model cars. His collection is in excess of 10,000 model cars (2012) and he is a two-time Guinness World Record holder for the year 2002 and 2003 for his collection of model cars which was 7,000 pieces at the time.[1]
He is the first ever Emirati after the royal family of the UAE to be awarded with a Guinness World Record Holder's Certificate. In response to his large collection of miniature cars, he has attracted titles such as "The King of Model Cars", "The Five Million Dollar Man", "The Pearl of UAE", "The Man Who Has Everything."[2]
He is a favourite of the car brand companies internationally and is acclaimed for being the first person to show the Maybach to His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the current President of the UAE and Emir of Abu Dhabi. He is often invited to motor shows, like the Frankfurt Motor Show, the International Motor Show and Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung (IAA) which is the world's largest motor show.
Suhail Al Zarooni, along with a team of engineers who work for Al-Zarooni Group of Companies, the companies he owns, is also one of the joint inventors of the Robot Jockey technology, for the UAE’s favourite sport, camel racing.[3]
Suhail Al Zarooni is also the largest collector of merchandise from Starbucks Coffee.[4]
He was invited to display his collection in 2001 for Dubai Shopping Festival and the 7th Middle East International Motor Show 2003 in Dubai, which was witnessed and appreciated by the members of royal families, rulers and people from all around the world. Then once again a part of his collection was displayed at the 10th Abu Dhabi Motor Show 2004 to showcase some of the models which he personally redesigned. He regularly participates with The Collectors, a prestigious 2-week annual event held during the Dubai Summer Surprises 2005 & 2006 in Bur Juman Shopping Center, 2007 in the Mall of the Emirates, 2008 & 2009 at Wafi Mall, and 2010 at Bur Juman Shopping Center. He is all over in the print media and news channels and was interviewed in 2010 by CNN International for the weekly program Inside the Middle East.
His interviews and articles have been published in newspapers and magazines some of which are in Arabic, English, German, Russian, Urdu, Malayalam, Georgian, Pashto, Sindhi, Armenian languages and many more.
Personal life
Al Zarooni is the second son of his father Mohammad Abdul Karim Al Zarooni; his siblings include three brothers. His father is from Dubai while his mother is a Pakistani Pashtun.[5] He is a graduate of Aitchison College, Lahore and completed matriculation from Karachi's B. V. S. Parsi High School in Pakistan before leaving for London United Kingdom to attain higher studies. He often visits Pakistan to meet members of his maternal family and can fluently speak Urdu and Pashto.[6]
Collections
Al Zarooni is an avid memorabilia collector, including royal memorabilia, newspapers, stamps, coins, drinking mugs, limited edition pens and plates. He holds the Guinness World Record for the largest collection of miniature cars.
He also has a large collection of life-size vehicles which include a custom-made Hummer H1, a Maybach, a red Bugatti EB110 GT and a rare BMW K1 Motorbike. He also owns a 1974 Rolls Royce.
A selection from the collection is on display this year at Bur Juman.United Arab Emirates
Boundaries Do Not Bind
Boundaries Do Not Bind is a peace initiative started by Al Zarooni. A popular wall of signatures stood proudly at Zarooni's Collector's Exhibition for passersby to put their vote behind this unique voice for peace and prosperity. This initiative was created in 2010 to uphold the friendly ties that the United Arab Emirates maintains with India and Pakistan.
The program pays respect to the expatriates that reside within the UAE and it echoes the friendly relations that Al Zarooni maintains with celebrities, politicians, cultural delegates, ministers and friends from these 3 nations. "I truly aspire for peace in our world and start with the people from the nations that I already know as a founding stone to build world peace together", says Suhail Mohd Al Zarooni. Boundaries Do Not Bind is a creative and friendly platform which also enjoys a growing fan-following on Facebook. Emarati CEO of Dubai Events and Promotions Establishment (DEPE) Laila Suhail and her team visited and signed the friendship board.
Future prosperity of 1.3 billion people of the sub-continent depends on Pakistan-India relations ” ,Suhail Al Zarooni
Peace in the World ‘to provide a help leave a better world for future generations to enjoy.’
Al Zarooni foundation
Suhail Al Zarooni started his first NGO which provides Education for Underprivileged Children.
Emirati Businessman and Collector Suhail Al Zarooni has set up his first NGO in Pakistan. The initiative, which took 15 months to conceive, brings together regional efforts and international expertise with a common goal to impact the level of education available to children, especially those who have been orphaned in the recent floods across Pakistan. Educate Our Children. These projects have received acclaim from the United Nations.The NGO is the first of those planned to affect the education of children in Asia, Europe and the Middle East. The Al Zarooni Foundation http://www.facebook.com/alzaroonifoundation[] is dedicated to providing world-class education to underprivileged children in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.NGO's core belief holds that all children have the right to an education that will secure their active participation in the global economy.
Think Green
‘To nurture our planet which we call home’. Suhail Al Zarooni
The Global demand for energy grows every year. Between 1990 and 2010, world energy consumption increased by 45% (Source: The Economist). We can reduce that number by recycling and reusing what we produce, and by reducing our consumption of resources like fuel.
A 1974 Rolls Royce, from the Al Zarooni Car Collection which was used in ‘The Godfather’ is now a celebrity for another vital cause – Think Green. The Rolls Royce is covered in beautiful, lawn green grass, to represent the eco-friendly attitude that ripples from people to major organizations. Together they have begun to act on these demands for a greener planet. Together, we can recycle and care for what we use like plastics and glass, reduce waste, reduce consumption of water and electricity, and impact our planet’s health, positively. A healthy home makes for a healthy planet.
Robot Jockey
Suhail Al Zarooni has done something remarkable for his country. As he owns a company in Taiwan and Japan, he and his engineers have designed and developed a Robot jockey for the United Arab Emirates’s most favorite sport, “The Camel Race”.
Camel racing is to be transformed as a spectator sport in the United Arab Emirates with Robot riders taking the place of child Jockeys; human operated with handheld radio units. The remote-controlled riders have mechanical legs for balancing or leaning and mechanical arms for pulling on their camel’s reins and can act like a human jockey to guide the camel towards victory.
According to a statement issued by the United Arab Emirates Government. The mechanical jockey is light in weight and receives orders via a remote control system fixed on the back of the camel.Other than the robotic jockeys, the factory also produces robots for the defense, aviation and fire-fighting industry. These robots are designed to withstand extreme conditions and hazardous environments.
References
- ↑ "Hobby turns UAE businessman a record holder". Gulfnews.com. 18 July 2008. Retrieved 09-07-2009.
- ↑ The man who has everything: The National (Abu Dhabi)
- ↑ Pak holds growth potential: Al-Zarooni (The Financial Daily)
- ↑ "Largest personal collection of Starbucks Coffee merchandise exhibited at Dubai Summer Surprises 2008". ABQ Zawya Ltd. 21 July 2008. Retrieved 09-07-2009.
- ↑ An Arab with a Pakistani soul, Dawn
- ↑ Personality of the Week Program: Suhail Al Zarooni (KalPoint)
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