10th MBR Creative Sports Award Registration To Open April 1

The 10th edition of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Creative Sports Award will open doors for registration on April 1 and August 31 is the final day for applications.

The announcement regarding the opening of the five-month long registration window was made by HE Moaza Al Marri, Secretary General of the Award, during a meeting with representatives of the local media at the Dubai Sports Council (DSC) office, in the presence of Nasser Al Rahma, the Director of the Award and Assistant Secretary General of DSC.

While the theme of the 9th Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Creative Sports Award was “Empowerment of Women in Sports”, the focus for the 10th edition of the prestigious global awards is “Empowerment of Youth, the Architects of the Future”.

The qualifying period of the 10th MBR Creative Sports Award is September 1, 2017, to August 31, 2018. The winners will be announced in the third week of November and they will receive their share of the prize-purse of AED7.5 million at a glittering awards function which will be held at the Dubai World Trade Centre’s Sheikh Rashid Hall on January 9, 2019.

Inviting individuals, teams and associations from across UAE and the Arab world, and sports federations from around the globe to send in their applications, Al Marri said: “The Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Creative Sports Award enjoys a prestigious place in the sports world – not just in the UAE and the Arab world, but around the globe.

“Over the years, we have witnessed an ever-increasing flow of applications, and it’s not surprising because the Award carries the name of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and reflects his policy of development in all spheres of life, chief among which is the sports sector.

“The Award is affiliated with the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, and we are really proud about it. It motivates us to work even harder and set her sights higher, and achieve greater distinction.”

Held under the banner of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, the MBR Creative Sports Award is the biggest of its kind in terms of categories and financial awards, and it is the first to reward creativity in the world of sports.

The 9th edition of the Award had witnessed a significant increase in the number of applications – from 198 for the 8th edition to 297. The number of applicants from inside UAE rose from 72 to 87, while the number of entries from International Sports Federations climbed from 15 to 26, an increase of about 73 per cent.

His Excellency Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan was named the UAE Sports Personality of the Year in the 9th edition, while Her Royal Highness Princess Rima bint Bandar Bin Sultan Al Saud of Saudi Arabia picked up the corresponding award for Arab Sports Personality.

“The remarkable success of the 9th edition of the award would not have been possible without the guidance and generous patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai, Chairman of Dubai Sports Council and Patron of the Awards,” Al Marri said.

“The vision and directives of our wise leadership have been the guiding principles of the Board of Trustees of the Award, which is headed by HE Mattar Al Tayer, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Award and Vice Chairman of Dubai Sports Council, and includes several eminent members of the global sports fraternity, among whom are chiefs of local and international sports federations.”

Talking about the theme for the 10th edition of the Award, Al Marri added: “We picked ‘Youth, the Architects of the Future’ after the end of the 9th edition. The Board of Trustees then referred the matter to HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed, who ratified and blessed the nomination of this theme since it is in sync with our wise leadership’s policy of supporting and empowering the youth in all spheres of life.

“HH Sheikh Hamdan also instructed the Board of Trustees to increase the number of winners in the junior category and support youth, who are expected to excel for the country in the future.”

THE MBR CREATIVE SPORTS AWARDS IN NUMBERS

Total number of applicants in 9 years: 1,835 (Local: 489; Arab: 1,145; International: 201)

Total number of winners in 9 years: 203 (Local 96; Arabs 93; International 14)

Winners include 143 individuals, 17 teams and 43 associations