EM CUP NEWS:

Jiu Jitsu gets big boost
By Our Sports Reporter

14 December 2006

ABU DHABI — The Emirates Cup Brazilian Jiu Jitsu championship was given a massive boost with the Armed Forces Officers Club (AFOC) chipping in with a sponsorship to back the sport ahead of the third edition of the competition here at the UAE Wrestling and Judo Federation auditorium located at the Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club on December 15 and 15, starting at 2pm on both days.


“The sport has grown rapidly in the last two years. I’m very pleased to see the Emirates Championship as a premier competition in the region has drawn more than 150 entries,” said Major General Mohammed Hilal Al Kaabi, deputy chief of staff of the UAE Armed Forces and chairman of the Officers Club at a Press conference on Tuesday.

“The UAE has become an international venue for several world class sporting events and now we can add Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as another on its own rights.

"The sport has received tremendous response from both, the national youth and the expatriates. We are glad to back the sport by providing whatever logistical backing to further develop and popularize it in the region,” added Kaabi, who is also the president of the UAE Athletics Federation.

The two-day championship under the patronage of Shaikh Zayed bin Mohammed Al Nahyan has drawn more than 150 entries and is co-sponsored by Abu Haleeqa, Al Noor Hospital, Caracal, Emirates Synaxis and Intensive Security Instruction Academy. The competition will be worked off in seven different weight categories and an open class.

“The Emirates championship has drawn a large number of entries from the UAE, both nationals and expatriates, and quite a number of entries from the Middle East, Europe, and North and South America,” said event manager Carlos Santos.

“We have more than 150 members, both nationals and expatriates, in our two training centres in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. I’m sure with regular competition this number is going to grow in the next couple of years. We expect this year’s competition to be much higher than the two previous editions now that they are better prepared for competitions,” added Brazilian three times world champion.

Santos is the head coach of the UAE team and has now acquired assistants Olavo Abreu and Suyan Queiroz to meet the growing demands.

“The national youth have adapted well to the sport. Some of them fared extremely well with Eid Rehan emerging winner of the Under 99kgs class.

"Hopefully they can win more medals than the previous year despite the high competition levels,” added Santos, who is in the final phase of forming a national body for the sport in the UAE and the Arab world.