UAE. Dubai Airports has hailed the success of its sponsorship of the UAE’s Shaheen rugby programme.
The Shaheen Rugby Development programme started with the support of Dubai Airports in 2014 and is responsible for a key Emirati element of the UAE Rugby Development and Performance Pathway. It focuses on youths aged from 15 to 19 and, primarily, the 7-a-side format of the game.
The programme is “paying huge dividends for the team and the sport by boosting participation levels tenfold, improving fitness levels and fuelling the team’s drive to support the UAE Olympic 7’s dream,” Dubai Airports stated.
The programme started with 20 Emirati players who had no real rugby background and now boasts more than 250 players aged 16 or over. Shaheen is the development squad for the UAE national rugby team.
UAE Rugby Chairman HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum said: “Dubai Airports’ support of UAE Rugby Shaheen programme changed the lives of those who have been involved and have created role models for others to follow.”
Shaheen Spokesperson Qais Abdulla Al Dhalai added: “It has been a huge success story and not only in terms of the growing number of participants. The enthusiasm of the group, love of the game, improving skills and fitness levels are also important success factors.
“Dubai Airports’ sponsorship and influence not only touches the players, but their families and friends. We estimate since the start of the programme over 420 different individual players have been involved in the Shaheen programme and over 2,000 Emirati families and friends have also been exposed to the sport as a result.”
Al Dhalai added that players have benefited from weight loss and a more active lifestyle.