Let’s hope Emirati schoolchildren are inspired by sporting events

Dubai: I was in the media room of the Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Sports Complex on Thursday waiting for the second session of the 2013 Fina/Midea Diving World Series to commence.

With a few minutes to spare in between, a small group of us got into a sort of debate about the lack of attendance at sporting events all over the UAE, and in Dubai in particular.

In the past, I have written about spectators not too keen about making the long trip to the sports complex that is located off the Dubai Bypass Road during much bigger Fina events. If there is no genuine interest in going and watching a particular sport, then there is very little that can be done to entice the fan out of the comfort of his or her home.

The topic then veered towards how ‘older’ sporting events like the Class One powerboat races at Dubai International Marine Club used to draw huge crowds in the past. However, as we all know, this is no longer the case as Class One may possibly be approaching a slow and painful exit.

That was off the point of discussion.

We returned back to the Fina events being held at the sports complex over the past three years. What has kept fans away despite the fact that the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in the past has even provided free buses to transport spectators to and fro?

On Thursday, for instance, there were a few hundred school students who kept the divers engaged, the focus of their attention throwing appreciative glances to the stands in acknowledgement of the cheering.

And then it struck me. What if we had just ONE child from this group of school children finding a spark from what they were seeing and setting a goal of being a world champion one day?

For anyone who has practised sport at any level, there has been some sort of motivation that has led him or her to pursue greatness in their chosen field. Tiger Woods had his father goading him on and his gift of a golf club on his fourth birthday has been well documented.

Then there is Roger Federer, who has time and again recalled the fact that he used to be a ball kid at the Basel Open. Off the cuff, these are two cases of sportsmen who found motivation at an early age. I am sure there are more.

But the more important thing for me would be if one day we have one of those kids from the crowd going on to be a world champion. That would be mission accomplished!