UAE | General
Beach lifeguards put skills and knowledge to test
Hoping to raise water safety awareness, competitors from UAE hotels and beaches vied for honours in the third UAE National Lifeguard Championships 2008 held yesterday at Le Meridien Al Aqah beach resort.
- By Fuad Ali, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:02 May 26, 2008
- Lifeguards competing in an event at the third UAE National Lifeguard Championships 2008 at Al Aqah beach resort.
- Image Credit: Supplied Picture
Fujairah: Hoping to raise water safety awareness, competitors from UAE hotels and beaches vied for honours in the third UAE National Lifeguard Championships 2008 held yesterday at Le Meridien Al Aqah beach resort.
Thirteen teams took part in the day-long event which tested the knowledge and skills of lifeguards in the areas of leadership, health, safety and emergency procedures, first aid, teamwork and physical fitness.
A team from Dubai Municipality and another representing the Intercontinental Hotel in Qatar were among the teams represented in the 2008 championships.
Stewart Hodsull, Event Organiser, said the level of skill among competing lifeguards has been steadily rising since the championship's inaugural year.
Improvement
"We've had good performances this year from all the teams even though we've added some new events," he said. Hodsull said new international-standard events were included in the competition this year in the hope of producing a UAE national team capable of competing in the International Lifeguard Championship in 2010.
"The championships are more than just a competition but an ideal platform to raise awareness of water safety and accident prevention by recognising life-saving heroes and generating new opportunities for the enhancement of lifeguard training," said Patrick Antaki, General Manager, Le Meridien Al Aqah.
"With the inclusion of a Dubai Municipality team, it shows that water safety is really starting to become of national importance, something which needs to continue and develop into a major water safety awareness campaign over the next few months," he said.
Socrates Alvaro, General Manager of Hayya, Emmar Hospitality, told Gulf News his lifeguard team was taking part for the first time and were enjoying testing their skills against more experienced competitors.
New events were included this year in the hope of producing a UAE national team capable of competing in the International Lifeguard Championship in 2010
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