Sharjah Ladies team crowned basketball champions

The Sharjah Ladies team has been crowned champions of the basketball competition of the ninth edition of the Ramadan Women’s Sports Tournament, which concluded on Friday.

The team clinched the tournament’s title after defeating the Bin Hamooda Chevrolet team with a score of 55-38 from four rounds of 13-12, 16-9, 14-9 and 12-8.

The Al Nasr Ladies team was in third place after defeating the Kuwaiti Salwa Al Sabah team with a score of 62-26 from four rounds of 17-9, 17-3, 6-3 and 12-11. The two teams played a close game, with the Al Nasr team’s players including professionals from the national women’s basketball squad.

With the three disciplines of volleyball, basketball and shooting, the ninth edition of the Ramadan Women’s Sports Tournament was held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, wife of H.H. the Ruler of Sharjah, Chairperson of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs and Chairperson of the Sharjah Women’s Sports Foundation, SWSF, the organisers of the event.

The closing ceremony was held in the presence of Khalid Eisa Al Midfa, Assistant Secretary-General of the General Authority of Youth and Sports Welfare, Abdul Aziz Al Noman, Secretary-General of the Sharjah Sports Council, SSC, and Nada Askar Al Naqbi, Director-General of the SWSF and member of the SSC, and Abdul Latif Al Fardan, Vice President of the Emirates Basketball Federation.

Al Midfa praised the organising of the women’s tournament for the ninth consecutive year in Sharjah during the holy month. He said the event contributes in elevating the readiness of its sportswomen to participate in national teams and the credit for this should go to the SWSF. He highlighted the Foundation’s role as an invaluable partner in the evolution and excellence of women's sports in the UAE.

Al Noman said that the annual tournament is a premier event that helps develop women's sports in Sharjah and across the UAE. He referred to the increasing number of female players participating in different disciplines and stressed their involvement in shooting, which has resulted in the nurturing of an elite group of professional female target shooters.

He also revealed that two women’s shooting clubs were recently inaugurated in the UAE one in the central region and one in the eastern region bringing the number of ladies shooting clubs in the country to three. He said that these new organisations will have a positive impact on the development of sports in the country.

Al Naqbi expressed her appreciation to H.H. Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed for her unremitting support to women’s sports in the country and for her patronage to the event. She also thanked the SSC for supporting the tournament, as well as all the other parties that contributed to making it such a success. She noted that the tournament has been instrumental in preparing players for the forthcoming fourth edition of the Arab Women Sports Tournament.

Noor Diab, administrator of the basketball team at the SSC, thanked SWSF for organising the tournament, which she said has proven to be highly successful. She attributed her team’s win to perseverance, respect for opponents and team spirit.

The week-long Ramadan Women’s Sports Tournament saw the participation of 350 female athletes from 20 sports clubs and private institutions from across the UAE. The ninth edition of the event also saw a women’s basketball team from Kuwait participating for the first time.

Source: Mena