Spring Entertainment and Sports Festival concludes successfully at Qidfa Village

The Spring Entertainment and Sports Festival concluded on a positive note at the beautiful beaches of Qidfa Village in Fujairah. The festival, which was inaugurated by Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad bin Saif Al Sharqi, President of the UAE Federation for Bodybuilding and Physical Strength Federation, attracted a large number of attendees and witnessed record-breaking participation. The festival, which was organised by the Emirates Council for Balanced Development, in partnership with the General Authority Sports (GAS) and the UAE Sports for All Federation in alignment with the ‘Emirates Villages’ project, sought to attain sustainable development goals across the country, with a special focus on rural areas.

The festival reflects GAS’s commitment to elevating the quality of life across the UAE by promoting sports activities and ensuring an understanding of sports among all members of society. The Authority’s key goal is to encourage people from different segments of society to be involved in sports activities and community initiatives, which will improve their health and physical fitness, in line with the National Sports Strategy 2031.

His Excellency Ghanem Mubarak Al-Hajri, Director General of GAS said: “At GAS, we relentlessly work to forge strategic partnerships with various government entities at federal and local levels, as well as private sector companies. In line with the vision and guidance of our wise leadership, the Authority aims to raise the level of sports engagement among community members to reach 71 per cent of the population by 2031.”

“Through this initiative, we seek to reinforce our partnership with the Emirates Council for Balanced Development and the UAE Sports for All Federation to encourage sports culture, boost physical activities across different UAE villages and ensure community members’ accessibility to various sports activities. It includes offering top-notch sports and recreational facilities to support the concept of ‘sports for all’ and elevate the overall quality of life, along with physical and mental health of community members,” he added.

Commenting on the productive collaboration among all the parties in organising the festival, Saeed Al-Ajel, Vice President of the UAE Sports for All Federation, said: “We express our gratitude to the Emirates Council for balanced Development, GAS and all other parties, for their efforts in organising this festival to encourage community sports. This festival caters as a dynamic platform for raising awareness of the relevance of sports, integrating it into everyday lives and reinforcing the relationship between community members. We attribute the success of this community event to the active collaboration between various institutions organising and participating in it, which underscores our collective effort to popularise sports culture among various social circles.”

The 10-day festival, held in collaboration with the Global MICE Organisation Limited X (GMOLx) in Qidfa, included a wide array of sports and entertainment activities for all age groups and served the interests of various community members. Furthermore, it included a number of sports competitions such as beach football, beach volleyball, swimming, kayaking and horse riding, as well as a variety of entertainment events and shows.

The Authority urged all community members to be active participants in the festival and benefit from the diverse activities it offers. Through these efforts, GAS aims to mark the festival as an initial step of various sports events that improve the quality of life of people in villages and areas across the country.

According to the findings of the national sports survey, the collaborative efforts between GAS and its numerous partners in the sports industry, along with federal and local government institutions, have created over a 15 per cent rise in the number of people participating in sports within the community.