The 25th of November 2015 was a special day for sports in the UAE, as it marked the first UAE National Sports Day.
Declared by the UAE National Olympic Committee (NOC) as an occasion to emphasize on the convening power of sports and the benefits of physical activity to each citizen and society as a whole, the National Sports Day was held only one week before the UAE National Day, which this year marked the 44th anniversary of the establishment of the United Arab Emirates as a country.
Under the slogan ‘UAE Unites Us’ and in a spirit of unity, the UAE NOC called upon public and private entities; sports federations, clubs and institutions; youth and communal authorities and all individual residents in the UAE to organize and participate in several sports events throughout the Emirates.
Including a wide range of sports and a set of recreational, education activities, “all citizens and residents living in the UAE, be it young or old, male or female, disabled or otherwise” were invited to take part in a national celebration of 229 events in total, that reflected the intimacy, harmony and positive interaction among multiple cultures living peacefully and happily in the UAE.
As an Abu Dhabi Government entity that is dedicated to promoting and facilitating women sports in the UAE, the FBMA joined numerous other entities in organizing and hosting sports activities. In line with its mandate, the Academy hosted a Government Entities Sport Tournament for Ladies, which took place over two days on 24 and 25 November at Al Bateen Beach in football and volleyball in coordination with the Abu Dhabi Sports Council.
Being two of the sports that are widely practiced in the UAE, football and volleyball attracted a wide variety of individuals from diverse backgrounds and ages including students, mothers and their daughters and professional athletes, who came together in the spirit of sportsmanship and friendly competition. Participants competed without fear of losing or embarrassment at lack of technical knowledge. The purpose of participation was clear: play and enjoy the benefits of sports, concerned more with having fun than winning! Also, further enhancing motivation for participation, the FBMA offered the winning teams the chance to meet and ‘play’ with the UAE female football and volleyball National Teams.
In line with the festive atmosphere preceding the occasion of the 44th UAE National Day, the FBMA benefited from the opportunity of the Tournament to further emphasize on Emirati culture while underlining the multiple roles that Emirati women embody proudly assume in society today. In a dedicated corner that featured businesses of local women, participants and audience could explore local cuisine, crafts and traditional clothes.
Finally, the FBMA also leveraged on the event to continue its year-long research on UAE women sport participation, by conducting a survey with participants and audience on the margins of the Tournament.
|
Teams Competing in Football (in teams of 5 and 3 substitutes) |
Place |
Teams Competing in Volleyball (in teams of 4 and 1 substitute) |
Place |
|
Al Wahda Club A |
1st place |
Al Wahda Club A |
1st place |
|
Al Wahda Club B |
2nd place |
Al Wahda Club B |
2nd place |
|
Zayed University |
3rd place |
(Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Sport Academy (FBMA) |
3rd place |
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