Dubai: The top official from the FAI World Parachuting Championships has promised to stage one of the best parachuting competitions in the world.
“We are all ready to go all out to ensure this championships is the biggest and the best-ever organised anywhere in the world,” Yousuf Al Hammadi, championship director, FAI World Parachuting Championships – Mondial 2012 Dubai, told Gulf News at the formal announcement of the event on Monday.
“A lot of people here have not slept for days, but all this has been to ensure the world gets the best championships ever in the history of this event,” he promised.
A record of more than 1,600 participants from 57 countries will be contesting in 13 different categories in this competition that is scheduled to take place at the Skydive Dubai on The Palm from November 28 to December 9.
The World Parachuting Championships will include 13 competitions including Formation Skydiving, Accuracy Landing, Water Speed Skiing, Free Flying, Free Style and Para Skiing that will be held for the first time in the Middle East.
“Para skiing will be a huge hit here. All over the world, Dubai is known as a desert. And now to have para skiing in the middle of the desert like a dream,” Al Hammadi said.
Dr Ahmad Sa’ad Al Sharif, general secretary of Dubai Sports Council and member of the Higher Organising Committee, said that the entire attention of the world will be on Dubai for the next fortnight due to the hosting of such a high-level competition.
“At the last Mondial held in Switzerland the number of participants was a mere 700. In comparison we have managed to attract more than 1,600 and this says so much about the UAE and its ability to play host to such an event,” Dr Al Sharif noted.
“It is a great coincidence that this championship comes at a time when the UAE celebrates its 41st national day. We want the participants and their families to embrace our culture and see what this wonderful country has to offer them,” he added.
Mohammad Yousuf, deputy championship director and technical director of the event, endorsed Dubai as the trendsetter in the world of parachuting. “We have adopted international criteria and the world governing body [FAI] has hailed this as a wise decision. We also have a global edge because of the various new categories of competitions that we will be hosting here this year,” Yousuf said.
Elaborate arrangements have been made to ferry spectators from various points in Dubai to the competition site at Skydive Dubai starting from November 28. Special seating galleries have also been set up to accommodate at 5,000 people per day.
