Sharjah 2016 opens the online application for participations on its new website

The Arab Women Sports Tournament has officially launched its new website, dedicated to the upcoming tournament’s 3rd round, to be held in Sharjah in February 2016, under the slogan: "Your World, Your Court, Together Victorious”.

The Women Sports Department is actively preparing for the tournament, organized under the auspices of HH Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, wife of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, and Chairperson of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs, in cooperation with the General Authority for Youth Welfare and Sports, the National Olympic Committee, and the Government of Sharjah, and is sponsored by the Arab League and the Council of Arab Ministers for Youth and Sports.

The follow-up committee of the 3rd Arab Women’s Sports Tournament - Sharjah 2016 announced that they are now accepting participation requests on the website dedicated for the tournament, which was officially launched under www.awst.ae.

Nada Askar Al Naqbi, Head of the Executive Committee and Manager of the tournament, said: "The website of the 3rd Arab Women’s Sports Tournament – Sharjah 2016 covers the needs of players, the media and the public, and provides detailed information and news about the tournament. The website has been launched under the title “Your World, Your Court, Together Victorious which encourages players to give their best and reach the winner podium."

Al Naqbi added: "Through the 2016 tournament slogan, we aim to instill freedom, confidence and enthusiasm in the hearts of all the girls and ladies, by encouraging them to perform all kinds of sports and by granting them opportunities to travel and meet athletes from across the Arab world. Through the logo’s simple words, we seek to urge the community to stand by women and encourage them to engage in the exciting world of sports, a world filled with enthusiasm and energy, and share with them the greatest moments of victory and triumph.”

For his part, Dr. Ibrahim Al Sakkar, head of the technical follow-up committee of the tournament said: "In this tournament the follow-up committee is now accepting applications electronically, and the tournament website enables club representatives that wish to participate in the 3rd tournament to easily fill out registration forms. We see this as a real turning point in the history of the tournament, for registration in previous sessions could only be done by sending documents by mail or fax. However, this year we have expedited the process, as all of these steps are executed swiftly via electronic registration in the website’s registration section.”

Al Sakkar said that there are two phases for registration: the initial registration period which runs until the end of October, and the final registration period which closes at the end of December 2015. He noted that the electronic registration process saves the follow-up committee and participants a lot of time and effort, adding that registration for each game is done separately. He said that registrants can also open personal accounts to save papers and documents, enabling them to receive messages sent by the committee on a regular basis for follow-up on the registration process. 

The website provides a list of the games of Arab women clubs and a general lineup for the 2016 Tournament, along with an index of the technical teams responsible for organizing all competitions and games included in the tournament, namely basketball, volleyball, table tennis, fencing, archery, shooting, athletics and show jumping.

The website furthermore includes a media section dedicated to daily monitoring and follow-up on news as well as game results since the tournament’s opening. Online visitors can find detailed information on the Sharjah Ladies Club since its establishment in 1982 and its myriad services provided to women, in addition to a thorough report on the Arab Women Sports Tournament and the steps leading up to its launch.

The tournament was launched initially after the Sharjah Ladies Club, which operates under the Supreme Council of Family Affairs, organized a series of successful sports events under the title "Gulf States Competitions”, in which all the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states took part. Also, HH Sheikha Jawaher Al Qasimi, the wife of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, issued a decision in 2008 to establish a new department under the name Women Sports Department.

Due to the great successes of the "Gulf States Competitions" sessions, HH Sheikha Jawaher Al Qasimi directed the initiative to turn these competitions into an Arab tournament to be held every two years, to advance women’s sports in the Arab region by opening the door of participation to all Arab states. The Arab Women’s Sports Tournament held in 2012 and the 2nd tournament held in 2014 stemmed from this vision.