Fazza Championship for Shooting begins on January 21

Sport360 staff 17:29 17/01/2015
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  • Cultural legacy: The Fazza Championship for Shooting has evolved into an important heritage tournament.

    The 13th Fazza Championship for Shooting – "Saktoun Rifle" will kick off on Wednesday, January 21, 2015 at the Dubai Police shooting fields in Ruwayyah. Organised and supervised by the Hamdan Bin Mohammed Heritage Centre, and held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, the Championship is set to feature a large participation from marksmen of various nationalities.

    Participants of the Championship will be given the opportunity to train and prepare for the event at the venue from January 18-20, and will be provided with all necessary equipment and amenities to facilitate the training, with the provision of trainers and specialists to help them get ready for the expected strong competition.

    Souad Ibrahim Darwish, Director of the Fazza Championships, said: "Under the guidance of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the Fazza Championship for Shooting – ‘Saktoun Rifle’ will kick off with participation from contestants of all age groups and social segments. The Championship has evolved into an important heritage tournament with a wide appeal, and enjoys a sterling reputation for its high level of competition.”

    "The tournament has undergone remarkable development over the years in terms of its organisation, categories and number of participants. In keeping with the Hamdan Bin Mohammed Heritage Centre’s commitment to preserve the UAE’s national heritage and its traditional sports, we are constantly striving to enhance all aspects of the tournament experience. The Championship in its inaugural edition had comprised just one category and featured non-traditional weapons; however, in order to preserve the heritage aspect of the sport, we restricted the weapon used to the traditional Saktoun gun. In time, we added several new categories, including ‘Juniors’, ‘Dual Team’, and ‘Junior Women’s’, and finally the ‘Elderly’ category,” she added.

    Brigadier Mohammed Obaid bin Abed Al Muhairi, head of the organising committee, thanked Sheikh Hamdan for his support in preserving the cultural legacy of the shooting sport and his patronage of the ‘Fazza’ heritage championships, which have gained global recognition, attracting new participants every year from around the world.

    "The Fazza Championship for Shooting – Saktoun Rifle is a unique tournament because it brings all members of the family, from grandparents to parents and children, together on one platform to take part in the different categories of the tournament, which we may not see in any other tournament in the world. The Championship categories cover the full spectrum, ranging from the Juniors’ category for those above 16 years of age to the Elderly category for people above 54. We offer free training with all equipment and facilities for participants of any nationality on the announced dates, and free training all-year-long for UAE nationals,” he said.

    “The Saktoun rifle is a traditional weapon used by our ancestors in hunting, and is considered  the ideal gun for beginners, who can effortlessly shift to using any other gun after learning shooting with Saktoun,” he continued.

    Participants in the ‘Dropping Dishes’ category should register during the three days of training, before the competitions start, while registration  for Target Shooting can be done on the day of the event.

    The main tournament will be held on January 21-22, while the Men’s and Junior Men’s category competitions will take place on January 22. Junior Men’s competitions will continue on January 23, alongside competitions in the Junior Women’s, Dropping Dishes and Women's categories. The Championship will conclude on January 24, with competitions in the Saktoun Shooting and Dropping Dishes categories, which will be followed by the tournament Finals.

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