UAE Rugby given NOC membership

Dubai: UAE Rugby was granted membership of the nation's National Olympic Committee at the organisation's General Assembly hosted by Shaikh Ahmad Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of the UAE National Olympic Committee.

"This is a great achievement for rugby union in the UAE and we are exceptionally pleased to be officially recognised by the UAE National Olympic Committee and Shaikh Ahmad Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum," said Mohammad Falaknaz, UAE Rugby Association Chairman.

"The UAE Rugby Association recently celebrated its third anniversary and during this time we set our aims high and have celebrated many successes. We will continue to work on growing the game, developing our youth through the schools and clubs and providing our Emirati players with more international games."

UAE Rugby's developmental Sevens Emirati side, Shaheen, claimed the shield at the recent Bangkok Sevens event, while both the UAE national team and Shaheen side are preparing for the upcoming Asian 5 Nations tournament, where the UAE will compete in Asia's top five and Shaheen will play Afghanistan in a series of sevens games.