Dubai: The UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation (UAE JJF) has a target to rope in at least 100,000 fighters by 2020.
Mohammad Salem Al Daheri, Vice Chairman, UAE JJF admitted that currently the federation has fallen behind on its target but the top official insisted that he is keen to push vigorously and make Jiu-Jitsu one of the fastest growing sports in the UAE.
“At the moment we have 44,000 practitioners of Jiu-Jitsu in the UAE. Our target looks difficult, but we have been doing all the right things to ensure we reach 100,000 within the next five years,” he added.
Backed by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, the UAE JJF has been keen with the promotion of Jiu-Jitsu at schools and club level. “Last year we added Dubai as part of the UAE Open Championships and this year we have added one round to be held in Fujairah (in January). Everyone has understood what Jiu-Jitsu is and this has helped hasten the spread of our sport at the grassroots level,” Al Daheri said.
“Though we are a bit behind, we still believe that we are on the right track,” he added.
Meanwhile, Brazil finished at the top of the standings at the end of the opening day of the Dubai Jiu-Jitsu Open Championships being held at the Al Nasr Club over the weekend.
The South Americans finished the day with 13 gold, nine silver and eight bronze for a total of 30 medals even as hosts UAE put up a strong fight to end in second place overall after winning nine gold, 13 silver and eight bronze for a total of 37 medals. Kazakhstan were third in the overall medals tally with five gold, one silver and three bronze.
One of the most impressive participants was the UAE’s Yayha Mansour Al Hammadi after the youngster ended with two gold medals, one in the open category and the second one in the above 92kgs. “This has been a fantastic showing from the UAE especially if you consider that we have more than 400 participants from 29 countries competing in this event,” Yousuf Al Batran, Board Member, UAE JJF said.
“A very important part of our strategy is to engage local residents. We have seen great interest in Jiu-Jitsu from the emiratis, but it is also very important for us to have residents getting involved,” he added.
Held under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman, Dubai Sports Council (DSC), this is the second year that a round of the UAE Open Jiu-Jitsu Championship is being organized in Dubai.
The first day on Friday witnessed the No-Gi (without the traditional kimono) competitions, while the Gi competition categories were being held till late in the evening on Saturday.
