Sharjah: The President of the Arab Sports Council (ASC) and Union of Arab National Olympic Committees (UANOC) has assured that Arab women can match their male counterparts in the sports arena in the near future.
Prince Talal Bin Badr Bin Saoud Bin Abdul Aziz told Gulf News that Arab women have been making steady progress in the field of sports for the past few years.
Prince Talal was speaking after signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for marketing and broadcast rights with Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmad Bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Chairman, Supreme Organising Committee for next year’s Third Arab Arab Women Sports Tournament (AWST), at the Sharjah Ladies Club (SLC), yesterday.
Also present at the signing Shaikha Hayat Bint Abdul Aziz Al Khalifa, Chairperson of the Follow-up Committee of AWST and Nada Askar Al Naqbi, Tournament Director.
“This is an amazing initiative with support from an amazing personality Shaikha Jawaher Bint Mohammad Al Qasimi, Wife of His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah. We are blessed to be involved in such an initiative from the Sharjah Ladies Club that helps our women come to the fore on the sports field once every two years,” Prince Talal told Gulf News.
“With sponsorship from Shaikha Jawaher and backing from Dr Shaikh Sultan, I am confident that this tournament will gradually evolve into one of the most important events on the sporting calendar in the Arab world. I commend the leadership shown by Nada [Askar Al Naqbi, Tournament Manager] and the Sharjah Ladies Club in organizing such a competition. We have seen the response so far and women’s sports will benefit due to this tournament,” he added.
Last year’s competition that was organized at various venues in Sharjah including the SLC, Al Thiqah Club and Sharjah Club, attracted nearly 900 women athletes from 12 countries from the Arab world. “The support to this tournament is important and we have noticed how the response has increased within a couple of years. The two-year period is another aspect that gives women enough time to prepare for the next edition,” Prince Talal said.
“There has been an improvement in the on-field performances as well. I am sure that very soon our women will match the performances of our men on the sports field, and events such as the Arab Women Sports Tournament will be among the features responsible for this improvement,” he lauded.
“This competition is just three years old, and during this time we have had two editions. We now need to be patient and wait for the fruits of this tournament,” Prince Talal added.
The AWST is organized by SLC once every two years. The first one was held in 2012 and witnessed competitions in five disciplines including athletics, basketball, volleyball, table tennis and shooting. Last year’s second edition added two new disciplines, namely archery and fencing, while next year’s third edition to be held from February 2-12 will witness competitions in eight disciplines including an all-new showjumping event. The tournament’s new slogan will be “Your World, Your Court, Together Victorious”.
