The inaugural Peace and Sport Cup - Women in Badminton - Dubai 2014 was held at Etisalat Academy from April 27 to 30. The tournament is organized by the Dubai Sports Council (DSC), in association with the Badminton World Federation (BWF) and the Monaco-based Peace and Sport. Nearly 50 women from across the Middle East participated in the event and the staff is comprised entirely of women. The players, coaches and technical officials were from Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and the hosting country the United Arab Emirates. The doubles pairs consisted of players from different nationalities. Players are divided into two groups and the best two pairs from either group advance to the knockout stages.
The president and founder of Peace and Sport, Dr. Joel Bouzou, IOC Member and BWF Vice-President (Africa), Dagmawit Girmay Berhane and BWF Secretary General, Thomas Lund attended the formal opening of the event at the Etisalat Academy. DSC Secretary General Dr. Ahmad Saad Al Sharif stated, “Our leadership is always challenging us to find the means to consolidate Dubai’s position on the world map. Badminton is a popular sport with a huge following and this event that caters to women players from the region will go a long way in achieving our goals.” Dr. Joel Bouzou followed, “I come here as a friend to launch this unique event that brings all women badminton players from the Arab world together, and hopefully there will be new friendships established by the time the competition is finished.” Thomas Lund also said, “It’s a unique partnership that we are witnessing here and it brings in great values. I am convinced this tournament will be a great inspiration for the entire region. It is an opportunity to build friendships using a sport ,in this case badminton, as a tool for peace.”
YONEX is very proud to support the Peace and Sport Cup with racquets and clothing for players, coaches and officials. YONEX received a certificate of appreciation from the organizers and a memento trophy from the Dubai Sport Council to commend our contribution towards the success of this event.
The YONEX mission statement is “To contribute to the development of the world’s social culture through sport and to surprise and delight our customers,” we shall continue to dedicate all our creativity and resources to achieve these goals.