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Abu Dhabi Vying For “World Capital Of Sports” Title

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There are always fireworks when the F1 rolls into town. Courtesy Crown Prince Court - Abu Dhabi
There are always fireworks when the F1 rolls into town. Courtesy Crown Prince Court - Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi City has qualified for the final stages of the race to become the World Capital of Sports 2019, a world-class award race organised by the European Capitals and Cities of Sport Federation (ACES Europe) where only the UAE capital and Taiwan’s Taipei are vying for the coveted title.

This was announced at a news conference attended by an ACES delegation at the Abu Dhabi Sports Council Thursday in the presence of Gian Francesco Lupattelli, President and Founder ACES Europe; Hugo Alonso, ACES Secretary General; and Aref Hamad Al Awani, Secretary-General of Abu Dhabi Sports Council (ADSC).

The ACES delegation includes nine of the world’s most renowned sports experts from Spain, Italy, China, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Scotland, Portugal, and Czech Republic. They toured the sports facilities of Zayed Sports City, Yas Arena, Al Forsan Sports Resort, Abu Dhabi Golf Club in addition to a number of other sports facilities in the UAE capital. They were briefed on the sports policies and regulations in the city, which are among the award main eligibility criteria.

ACES President, during the news conference, thanked the Abu Dhabi Sports Council, for the services they received during their inspection visit to reach a final say about selecting one the two cities to become the world’s Capital of Sports.

He reviewed the history of the award and the key cities that won the global title while elaborating on the general regulations governing the selection process.

For his part, Hugo Alonso said the award eligibility criteria include the volume and quality of global and societal sports activities organsied by the candid city besides the sports practice level among residents and visitors. A minimum of 80 points is the prerequisite for being eligible to the award, he explained.

For his part, Ahmed Al Qubaisi, Director of the Marketing and Activities Department at the ADSC, attributed the sports upswing in the emirate to the support of the country’s wise leadership, and the directives of H.H. Sheikh Nahyan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council.

He expressed delight with Abu Dhabi qualifying for the final stages of the race which is widely and officially acknowledged by the European Parliament and the UN as well as by different European sports agencies.