Abu Dhabi: Local tennis stars have been taking to the court at the Abu Dhabi National Convention Centre (ADNEC) for an early start to the local season through the Mubadala Tennis in Schools Ramadan event.
The event marks the starting point for many young hopefuls wanting to improve their skills ahead of the UAE tennis calendar. The grass roots programmes, the Mubadala Tennis in Schools (MTiS) and Community Cup, have been developed from the heart of the championship to contribute to sustaining a positive health and social impact in the community through tennis. This Ramadan event is the first of many planned for 2016.
Over the last eight years, the community programmes have reached thousands of youth and played a critical role in building an organic passion for tennis throughout the region. Each year, MTiS directly delivers mini-tennis coaching sessions to over 600 pupils while over 160 teachers have also received coaching since the programme’s inception.
Meanwhile, the Mubadala Community Cup has welcomed hundreds of competitors each year not only from the UAE but also throughout the wider GCC region. With over 300 participants this year alone and more player categories than ever before, the Mubadala Community Cup continues its title as the largest amateur tennis tournament in the region.
Speaking at the ADNEC event, Saoud Ahmad Abdul Rahman Karmastaji, assistant manager, Group Communication, of Mubadala, said: “New for 2016, the ADNEC activity has been launched to create new opportunities for young people of the UAE to pick up a tennis racket, learn new skills and have fun with their peers. We are delighted by the support the first-ever Ramadan event of this kind at ADNEC has got. The event provides the perfect platform to extend our programme to reach more UAE youth and encourage them to enjoy the benefits of sport.”
