Dubai: Sports associations in the UAE will have a new home by summer next year after the National Olympic Committee (UAE NOC) announced plans to give shape to its new headquarters in Dubai's Al Nahda 1 area.
"This is a huge step for sports in the UAE," Yousuf Al Serkal, vice-president of the UAE NOC, told Gulf News after releasing details of the project, which is being built at an estimated cost of Dh16.4 million.
The building will house 21 sports associations and bodies from across the country, along with a separate floor for the staff of the UAE NOC.
Also attending the announcement of the project was Hussain Nasser Lootah, director-general of the Dubai Municipality; Eng. Mohammad Al Mashroom, director-feneral, Projects Department, Dubai Municipality, and Ebrahim Abdul Malek, general-secretary, General Authority of Youth and Sports Welfare (GAYSW) along with several top officials from various sports associations of the UAE.
Dubai Municipality is executing the development which provides for a ground floor plus four upper floors through Gurg Consultants. The estimated date of completion is set for July 27, 2012, the same day as the opening ceremony of the London Olympics.
Right step
"That date is just a coincidence. It's not an official opening or something, but only a date for the completion of the contract between Dubai Municipality and the contractor," Al Serkal said.
"There are other works to be executed within the project, so the final date of completion and occupancy may well be by mid-2013," he added.
Mohammad Al Kamali, secretary-general, UAE NOC, agreed that the construction of the new headquarters is a "right step in the right direction for sports in the UAE".
"When there is organisation and planning in sports, the results will be seen on the field. Being under one roof is definitely going to be a huge boost for various sports activities in the country," Al Kamali said.
"We were keen to take up this special project as a challenge as it is meant to house all associations," Lootah said.
"With the execution of this project we will achieve a strategic goal for sports in the UAE as we will have a permanent home for the entire Olympic family," said Abdul Malek.
Giving details, Al Mashroom said that the uniqueness of the project lay in the prestige factor. "We have used a lot of flexibility in the design, on spacing and use of latest technology," he said.
