DUBAI: The curtains came down on the inaugural Dubai Open Table Tennis Academies Championship (DOTTA) with UAE player Mayed Nawaf Al Kaabi walking away with the crown at the ISD courts in Dubai Sports City.
Organised by the Dubai Sports Council in cooperation with the UAE Table Tennis Federation and tournament operating partner ISD Dubai, the championship witnessed a full house at the ISD Table Tennis courts at Dubai Sports City.
Definitely among the finds of the competition, Emirati Mayed Nawaf Al Kaabi walked away with the Under-12 category after defeating Henroy Day, while Azan Abdullah had to stay content with third place.
In the Under-15 category, Abdulrahman Ganio clinched the top spot, followed by Chloe Isabel Silva in second place and Joaquim Yenigou Adriano in third place.
This brand-new addition to the Dubai sporting scene aims at enhancing the Dubai Sports Council’s efforts of attracting and developing emerging sports talent in keeping with its policy launched in line with the Dubai Government’s directives to attract and develop talent across all sporting disciplines.
This championship served as a platform to highlight emerging talent in table tennis, and witnessed strong competition and impressive skill displays across both age groups.
Ahmed Salem Al Mahri, Director of the Sports Talent Management Department at the Dubai Sports Council, emphasised the importance of competitions such as the Dubai Open Table Tennis Championships in strengthening sports talent development programmes across all sports.
The Council has organised similar Dubai Open Championships in football, basketball, volleyball, handball, swimming, karate, gymnastics and tennis, with great success so far. He noted that the wide participation in these championships reflects their great success and is a positive indicator for their future expansion.
Al Mahri also praised the outstanding technical level witnessed in the table tennis championship, emphasising that it was an ideal platform for discovering promising talents who will form a fundamental pillar of future national teams.
Diego Neves de Almeida, General Manager of ISD Dubai Sports City, emphasised that the tournament goes beyond the competitive aspect. “The Dubai Open Table Tennis Academies (DOTTA) Championship was not just a competition; it was an opportunity to inspire young athletes and instill a love of table tennis in them. Seeing the children give it their all and support each other is truly a source of pride. The competitions were characterised by a high level of sportsmanship among the players, in addition to promoting finer values of respect, discipline and a passion for challenge, which left a positive impact on the participants, parents and coaches,” Al Mahri remarked.
The tournament concluded with an awards ceremony, where the top winners in the Under 12 and Under 15 categories were honoured for their outstanding performances, exceptional skills and fighting spirit while ending on the podium.