25/4/2005, 07:57 (UAE) Mohammad supports new tennis stadium in Fujairah By Alaric Gomes, Staff Reporter
Dubai: Six state-of-the-art tennis courts. A state-of-the-art VIP enclosure and a well-equipped media room.
These plans will slowly come to fruition in Fujairah by the end of next year.
This ambitious blueprint is the dream of Khalid Ali, with the generous support of General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and UAE Minister of Defence.
Recently, Shaikh Mohammad donated a generous amount needed to make the Fujairah Country Club and Tennis Stadium a reality.
To be called the Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Tennis Stadium, the new facility, overlooked by the mountains, has six outdoor tennis courts and a multi-purpose indoor hall.
The seating capacity will be over 3,000 with a special section for the VIPs. Construction on this Dh20 million project got under way in the beginning of this month after a visit by Shaikh Majid Bin Mohammad Al Maktoum and Shaikh Rashid Bin Hamed Al Qasimi to Fujairah on March 31.
The emirate of Fujairah finally got what it had hoped for so many years a top-class tennis facility that one can be proud of in any part of the world, thanks to Khalid Al Ali.
"I dreamt of having a tennis facility for training juniors in Fujairah and the surrounding regions," Al Ali said.
"We discussed this idea and that is how the Fujairah Tennis Club was formed with the blessings of Shaikh Rashid Bin Mohammad Al Sharqi, son of Shaikh Hamad Bin Mohammad Al Sharqi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Fujairah.
Shaikh Mohammad's support took the plans to a higher level.
"To have such important people coming over and laying the foundation stone just goes to show the interest that the ruling families have towards the development of youth here," noted Al Ali.
"For me, this stadium is like a dream come true. We are in the process of achieving something really big for the future of the youth here."
Flashback
When a dream was born out of a casual chat
Hani Al Khafief is one of the few who has been associated with the idea of setting up a tennis infrastructure for the Eastern region from the start.
"I recall those days when I had to be in Fujairah to try and sort out things to put the idea on track," Al Khafief recalls.
Like most ideas, this one too emanated during a casual talk. "One day I was sitting with Khalid Al Ali and talking about how we can improve tennis in the region," he states. That was at the end of 2002.
With Al Ali as the pivot, the idea was conveyed to His Highness Shaikh Hamad Bin Mohammad Al Sharqi, Ruler of Fujairah.
The initial concept was to have a tennis training centre with eight courts and about 50 rooms to board the players. "The idea was accepted in principle and Dh 12 million was also set aside for the project."
It was at this juncture that Al Ali got the Fujairah Tennis Club running with their own programme for the development of the game. By early 2003, the plans were drawn and Al Khafief was among the first to give his assessment for the work to go on.