UAE Sports
Sheikh Mansoor attending a video conference with Dubai Sports Council officials last month. Image Credit: Courtesy: Dubai Sports Council

Dubai: Sports activities in Dubai will be ‘‘gradually reopening’’ now with all the precautionary measures and safety guidelines issued by Dubai’s Supreme Committee for Crisis and Disaster Management and other relevant government entities.

Annoucing this, Saeed Hareb, Secretary General of Dubai Sports Council, has thanked the leadership of the UAE and Sheikh Mansoor Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Sports Council, for their guidance, which allowed the Council to be flexible through the COVID-19 crisis and play a leading role in gradually restarting the sports activities.

“Thanks to the vision and wisdom of UAE’s leadership, the country enjoys leading position in virtually every field, not just at the local or regional level, but globally,” Hareb said. “Under the guidance of our Chairman, Sheikh Mansoor Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, we at Dubai Sports Council have been able to match the development and achievements witnessed in the other sectors of the UAE.

“We have clear plans for our work on the level of leadership and development of the sports sector and its national contribution, as well as in strengthening UAE’s position as the leading country in the world of soft power. In dealing with the challenges arising from the COVID-19, we have shown leadership, speed and flexibility in our plans, opening drive-through COVID-19 test centres at two of our clubs, Al Nasr and Shabab Al Ahli Dubai, and volunteers from the Council and our clubs worked alongside the professionals at the two centres as the first line of defence in the efforts to control the pandemic.

Elaborating on the plan for opening the sports sector, Hareb said: “Working with relevant authorities, the Council has drawn up a detailed list of instructions for local and private clubs and academies, and fitness centers, in both Arabic and English, to ensure the safety of participants and staff and we will be evaluating these sports entities continuously, in cooperation with relevant authorities, and ensure to ensure compliance with all the safety procedures.”