(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) It is often called the University Olympiad and is considered to be one of the largest multi-sport event in the world besides the Olympic Games.
Oman has been a regular participant at the Summer Universiade since 1999 and will be competing in four disciplines at the forthcoming 2017 Summer Universiade, which will be held in Taipei from August 19-23.
Salim al Araimi, the OCUS chief
In his remarks to Muscat Daily on Tuesday, Salim al Araimi, the chairman of the Oman Committee for University Sports (OCUS), said, 'Oman has been representing at the Universiade, the biggest sports festival for varsity students, for the past many years. This time, we are sending four teams to compete in athletics, table tennis, taekwondo and swimming.
'A total of 30 sportspersons including two girls will compete in Taipei. The teams have been picked after a thorough selection process and we hope that the participants will give their best and aim for a podium finish.'
'At the Summer Universiade, it allows university student-athletes from all over the world to celebrate with the host city in a true spirit of friendship and sportsmanship,' said Araimi.
In Taipei, Oman will be fielding a team of seven wimmers, six players in taekwondo, four paddlers in table tennis, and 13 athletes including two girls - Mazna al Maliki and Eaynuh al Hamimia.
Araimi will head the Oman delegation while Ahmed al Darmaki has been named his deputy.
Omani students began their participation in Universiade way back in 1999 but in those days the teams or athletes were mainly representing the Sultan Qaboos University.
It was only after the formation of the OCUS, by the Ministry of Sports Affairs, in 2007 that the sultanate's delegation comprised Omani students from various colleges and universities.
It was in 2009 when the first Oman delegation was picked by the OCUS for the SummerUniversiade in Belgrade, Serbia. Two years later, Oman was officially affiliated to the International University Sports Federation (FISU).
Since the participation in Serbia, the OCUS has ensured that Omani students regularly take part in the biennial Universiade. More than 10,000 students are expected to take part in Taipei 2017Universiade. At the Shenzhen Universiade in China in 2011, there were a record 10,622 participants while 174 countries took part in Daegu, South Korea in 2003.
MENAFN2607201701410000ID1095659878
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.