Dubai: The 37th edition of the India Club UAE Open badminton tournament will commence on May 27 at India Club, Dubai. The tournament is being presented by Manipal University and traces its way back to 1978 when it was launched to encourage local talent.
The tournament is open to players from the UAE as well as overseas. There is no restriction on players from outside the UAE as long as they are able to comply with the tournament schedule.
As in the previous edition, the tournament will comprise of 26 categories. To encourage and promote badminton among youngsters, and also due to popular demand, various categories with age limits ranging from 8 years to 18 years besides Masters and Super Veteran categories have been retained.
The finals of the tournament are scheduled for June 20, 2014. Cash Prizes, trophies and gift hampers amounting to more than Dh50,000 await the winners. As in the past, the Tournament is expected to attract a large number of players of different nationalities from across the UAE.
As part of India Club’s continuing drive towards corporate social responsibility (CSR), exhibition matches will be conducted for special needs children. Invitations are also being sent to labour accommodations encouraging participation. Mementos and certificates will be awarded to all the participants in the special needs and blue collar labour categories.
The entry fee to the tournament has been retained at the same level as in previous years and has not witnessed an increase in the last 7 years. On week days, matches will commence from 7 pm and on Fridays from 10 am.
As in the past, each player will be restricted to participatation in three events. This is to allow the opportunity for more players to make it to the top.
The sponsors of the event are Manipal University. The asscociate sponsors are Emax while the co-sponsors are Consolidated Shipping Group, Carrera Sunglasses and eTutor. Unifruti are the support sponsors of the event.
Entry forms are available on the India Club website — www.indiaclubdubai.com. The last date for receiving entries will be May 20. Last year, 559 entries were registered in the 26 categories and a record number of 533 matches were played in various categories. Players from India, Pakistan, Philipines, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, United Kingdom, Hungary, Iran, Lithuania and Jordan took part in the tournament.
