Maktoum Creative Sports Award extend deadline till September

Dubai: The deadline for nominations of Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Creative Sports Award, one of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, will be kept open till September 15 for selection of Emirati and Arab athletes who could excel at the Summer Olympics and the Paralympic Games in Tokyo. The winners will be honoured at a glittering awards ceremony in January, 2022.

Announcing the new deadline, Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Creative Sports Award, said: “Under the directives of Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai and Patron of the Award and Sheikh Ahmed Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the UAE National Olympic Committee and President of the Award, it has been decided to keep the window of nominations for the 11th edition of the award open until September 15 in order to give an opportunity to Emirati and Arab athletes, who have been successful at the Summer Olympics and the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, to file their nominations for the Award.

“The decision was made in order to recognise the achievements of Olympic and Paralympic athletes and honour them in a befitting manner, and also in the belief that it will have a great effect on raising the morale of athletes who will be competing at these Games, and it will be an added incentive for them to do well on the greatest stage in international sport.”

2,188 awardees so far

Al Tayer added: “The award also seeks to appreciate and honour local, Arab and international sports institutions who have launched initiatives, programmes and creative projects that seek to empower societies through sports, and contribute towards facing global challenges in the sports sphere. This stipulation includes all the elements of administrative and institutional excellence and supports the efforts of Emirati, Arab and international federations, organizations and sports institutions in devising solutions to meet challenges, including initiatives launched to successful meet the challenges of COVID-19 or other challenges around the globe.”

The number of participants during the previous 10 sessions of the award are 2,188 individuals, teams and organisations from 188 countries, including 583 from the UAE, 1,386 from Arab countries and 219 from the rest of the world. The Award has honoured 230 winners in the past decade, including 110 from the UAE, 104 from the Arab region and 16 from the rest of the world.

One hundred and sixty-five of the winners have been individuals, while 19 teams have featured on the winners’ list and 46 local, Arab and international institutions have been honoured for their creativity.

Award categories

1. Individual Sports Creativity Category: The award is given to players, coaches, administrators and referees for creativity and innovation in sports at the Emirati, Arab and international levels.

2. Team Sports Creativity Category: The award is given to teams for creativity and innovation in sports at the Emirati, Arab and international levels.

3. Institutional Creativity Category: The award is given to sports bodies for creativity and innovation in sports at the Emirati, Arab and international levels.

Award levels

1. The Emirati level for athletes in the United Arab Emirates.

2. Arab level for athletes from all Arab countries.

3. The International level for international sports federations and sports institutions.