Abu Dhabi Sports Council, in partnership with Emirates Schools Establishment (ESE), the Department of Community Development and Inspiratus, announced today the new season of Abu Dhabi Schools Champions (ADSC), Abu Dhabi’s official multi-sports schools league to develop and empower youth sports and athleticism and embed healthy lifestyles among school children in Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi Schools Champions reflects Abu Dhabi Sports Council’s mission to elevate the level of school sports in the nation , promote health and wellness and build a community spirit around sports, while promoting the discovery of local talent and reinforcing the nation’s shared vision to raise a healthy future generation.
The new season was announced by Abu Dhabi Sports Council at a technical meeting attended by the PE directors, teachers and coaches from participating schools across the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, alongside referees and volunteers. During the technical meeting, the schedule and venue logistics were shared, as well as the rules and regulations for each sport, and the code of conduct of the Championship aligned with its overall values, goals and objectives.
Taking place across Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Al Dhafra, Abu Dhabi Schools Champions is open to all schools, at no cost, to encourage the largest number of youth to be active, gain tournament exposure at world-class standards and get discovered by professional clubs. The tournament enables school children to compete in 5 sanctioned sports: football, basketball, volleyball, handball and athletics as well as swimming in preparation for a special competition to be held during the 15th edition of the FINA World Swimming taking place in December 2021 at Etihad Arena.
Tournaments will be overseen by sports club scouts on the lookout for top players who will be selected for trials and training with the clubs, with a view to become professional players.
The season kicks off in October 2021 and runs through March 2022. The league will be run in three phases. The first phase will be run as an intra-school competition between October and December 2021, with matches played among cycles during week days in the schools.
In the second phase, top performing school teams will compete against each other in an inter-school competition from January 2022 to March 2022. In the third phase, top teams from each city will compete in the semi-finals which will be held in Abu Dhabi. Qualiftying teams, consisting of 2 teams from Abu Dhabi, 2 from Al Ain and 1 from Al Dhafra, will then compete in the Finals which will be held at NYU University in Abu Dhabi.
The new season of Abu Dhabi Schools Champions builds on last season’s success and overwhelming participation with over 2,500 male and female students from nearly 350 schools across the Emirate. Abu Dhabi Schools Champions also created a pipeline of athletes for Abu Dhabi clubs, through its talent identification platform. In its first season, 14 football and basketball top talents, both boys and girls, were identified by scouts and selected for trials with their teams.
Speaking at the kick-off of the new season of Abu Dhabi Schools Champions, H.E. Aref Hamad Al Awani, Secretary General, Abu Dhabi Sports Council, said: ”We are proud to announce the new season of Abu Dhabi Schools Champions, with our partners the Ministry of Education, ESE, the Department of Community Development and Inspiratus. In a short period of time, Abu Dhabi Schools Champions has established itself as a valuable platform reflecting the important role of sports as part of education and community development. It also reflects the commitment of Abu Dhabi Sports Council to develop the sports sector and encourage students to get active through implementing an annual calendar of sports programs that promotes school sports competitions.”
His Excellency Sultan Al Mutawa Al Dhaheri, Executive Director of the Community Engagement and Sports Sector at the Department of Community Development, commended Abu Dhabi Schools Champions on its second season launch, and reaffirming its vital role in encouraging students to take up physical activity from a young age. This in turn will promote a fit society, which is one of the key objectives of the Department of Community Development.
His Excellency added: “Abu Dhabi Schools Champions provides a unique opportunity to elevate and develop the level of sports in all its forms to encourage members of the community to be healthier and happier. This is in line with our objectives to promote a healthy and active lifestyle among our community members, empowering a new generation with leadership, social and athletic skills at the highest levels.”
He added that Abu Dhabi Schools Champions represents a groundbreaking initiative that invests energies in the right enriches society from an educational and cultural liestyle aspects contributes to investing energies and providing clubs with qualified talent.
For her part, Dr. Rabaa Al Sumaiti, Director General of the Emirates Schools Establishment, said: "The partnership with the Abu Dhabi Sports Council and the Department of Community Development is a pivotal step towards achieving our goals at the Emirates Foundation for School Education to enhance students’ well-being. With the return of physical education to schools, we aim to raise awareness about of the importance of sports and promote a sporting culture, where sports become part of students’ daily lifestyle, which will reflect positively on their education."
Abu Dhabi Schools Champions’ tournaments across all sports will follow official league rules and regulations adopted by local and international professional sports associations. The tournament will be executed to world-class standards with team and individual competitions. All sports will be open to children in Cycle 2 (middle school) and Cycle 3 (high school) with football and athletics also open to Cycle 1 (elementary school). All full-time students will be allowed to enter and each school will be allowed to enter one team per cycle per sport.
Prizes include professional training camps with Abu Dhabi Sports Council global partners, tickets to attend live professional league matches and tickets to global tournaments organized by the Abu Dhabi Sports Council with the opportunity to meet international sports stars, alongside cups and medals for winning teams and schools.
For registration and more information, please visit champions.adsc.ae
