UAE’s Mirza explains no-show in Doha

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  • Bearing the flag: Yousef Mirza (c).

    Yousif Mirza, the UAE’s top rider, admits he feels the Road World Championships staged in Doha, Qatar, earlier this month were a “missed opportunity” and he laments not being able to compete in what would have been considered a home race for him.

    Mirza, the first Emirati to qualify for and contest the road race at the Olympics, was a bizarre no-show in the Qatari capital last week and instead competed in an Asian Cup on the track and brought home a team bronze medal.

    As the Gulf region’s number one road cyclist, it was expected that Mirza would lineup for Worlds in the neighboring Qatar, where riders from all GCC countries took part.

    But Mirza revealed it wasn’t entirely his decision to opt for the track in India instead of the road World Championships in Doha.

    “The federation had other thoughts,” the 28-year-old told Sport360 on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi Tour, where he is competing alongside his Nasr-Dubai team-mates.

    “All the GCC riders took part in Doha as you can see, except the UAE. The federation decided we’re better off going to a track meet in Asia.”

    Asked if he sees it as a missed opportunity, Mirza said: “Yes it was for sure.”

    While Mirza would not reveal the reason behind the federation’s decision, it’s worth noting that there had been recent elections in the UAE Cycling Federation and netting continental medals would reflect well upon the leadership.

    An all-Emirati squad has been representing Nasr-Dubai in the ongoing Abu Dhabi Tour after all foreign riders recruited to the team, formed early this year, were let go by management.

    “After successful debut in Dubai Tour (p10 & p5) and smaller races – from today @V_Al_Nasr_Dubai is shut down. All riders are free,” tweeted Lithuanian Tomas Vaitkus on September 1, implying Nasr-Dubai was disbanding.

    Mirza insists the team is still going strong but that the foreign riders were released, with new ones expected to be recruited between now and end of the year.

    “It’s a special thing that we are all 100 per cent Emirati,” said Mirza, who added that the team is still fully-funded.

    “We have signed with all our sponsors two-year deals, be it with Trek, or with Al Nasr Club. The management of the team made the call to release our foreign riders but our strategy has not changed.

    “We are simply changing the foreign riders with us. The idea of having foreign riders was to share their experience with us, improve our technique, give us training tips, to show us what a life of a professional rider looks like. Maybe our management had other ideas.”

    Asked if there were any specific problems with the riders who have left, Mirza responded: “They were great but it’s not up to me. It also doesn’t affect me. I’m going on my same path, whether I’m riding with foreigners or without them.”

    Mirza, who crashed on day two of the Abu Dhabi Tour on Friday but did not abandon the race, is the leader of Nasr-Dubai and is on a quest to raise the profile of cycling in the Emirates.

    He believes professional teams set-up within the nation should make sure the return on investment directly benefits local talent with the sole purpose of developing cycling in the UAE.

    The first professional cycling team to come out of the Emirates was Skydive Dubai-Al Ahli Club in 2014. They were surprisingly snubbed by Abu Dhabi Tour organisers and while Mirza doesn’t know why, he has his own theory.

    “I do find it strange that they haven’t been invited but it’s up to the Abu Dhabi Tour organisers,” said Mirza.

    “If it were my guess, this is my personal opinion, it probably has to do with the fact that Skydive Dubai mainly comprises of foreign riders and that does not benefit UAE cycling in any way.

    “That’s my personal opinion, but maybe Abu Dhabi Sports Council feel the same way, that paying money to some foreign riders does not help develop Emirati cycling. It’s not my call, ultimately I’m sad – or not sad but I don’t accept their absence. They are my colleagues and my friends.

    “But I also believe that there should be at least one or two riders from the UAE to be included in a project like that. And they should urge them to take up the sport professionally and dedicate themselves to this sport as a profession. They need to urge the riders to make sacrifices.”

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