Saudi sports federation promotes healthy homebound living

Short Url
Updated 23 March 2020
Follow

Saudi sports federation promotes healthy homebound living

  • As the virus affects everyday life, one’s well-being becomes all-important

RIYADH: Around the world, the coronavirus crisis has brought everyday life to a standstill. Social distancing is no longer an option but a necessity.

And just as the home has also become the office for thousands of Saudis in recent weeks, so it is set to become their gym as well.
Staying in, according to the Saudi Sports for All Federation, does not have to mean the end of exercising, or ignoring your health.
Under the banner of the campaign and hashtag Baytak Nadeek (Your Home, Your Gym), the federation is hoping to promote an activity and health campaign in the coming months.
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal, president of the federation, has acted quickly to tackle an issue that could have led to physical and mental problems down the line.
“Given the new regulations that Saudi is facing in terms of staying indoors, we decided to pivot to a more campaign-driven approach that was focused on our secondary messaging: Overall health, wellness and community well-being,” he said.
“We moved very quickly from outside active living to indoor active living. This is showcased in our videos all across social media and on the website.
Prince Khaled praised the role that Health Minister Dr. Tawfiq Al-Rabiah is playing in the campaign, and the backing received from the Saudi government.
“I’m really proud of having a government that knows what’s good for the people,” Prince Khaled said, adding that Al-Rabiah “has been super transparent and a high-level communicator, keeping everyone informed, and that’s what’s bringing Saudi together as one to keep health and wellness the first nationwide priority.”
The federation “is going to keep pushing on every front to support the government’s aims to keep us healthy and strong,” Prince Khaled said. “This is what our new Healthy Living information portal is about.”

Everything is scientifically derived. We’ve got workouts, fun ideas, we even curated playlists for people in Saudi to use and get motivated.

Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al-Saud, President, Saudi Sports for all Federation

The Healthy Living section of the federation’s website has over the last week been populated with articles and programs that cover a range of topics that seek to maintain physical and mental well-being in the current crisis.
“We’ve pivoted, literally in less than 48 hours, from an entity that’s event-focused to being both events- and campaign-focused,” Prince Khaled said.
“We’re driving public awareness initiatives and frontline campaigns. We have diversity there too. There’s everything from home workouts to the best in-class nutrition advice,” he added.
“Everything is scientifically derived. We’ve got workouts, fun ideas, we even curated playlists for people in Saudi to use and get motivated.”
Nutrition is seen as especially important, with more and more content expected on the Healthy Living portal, which the federation sees as essential going forward in line with the Quality of Life program.
Nor is this campaign designed to be solely a quick fix. The idea is that taking up homebound activities will remain a blueprint for a healthy lifestyle even after the coronavirus crisis has passed.
“I definitely think this is sustainable. This is one of our main objectives,” Prince Khaled said, adding that the federation’s “drive toward making health and wellness information readily available and accessible to all is perfectly timed in line with the government’s goals to secure the safety and welfare of Saudi.”
He said: “As for the sustainability aspect, if there’s any silver lining to what’s happening now, we consider that the … federation is responsible for getting people increasingly educated about nutrition, health, and how advisable it really is to stay active.”
He is aware that the enforced change of lifestyle due to the spread of coronavirus could have certain long-term effects in the coming months, and sees the Baytak Nadeek campaign and similar ones as necessary consequences.
“It’s no secret that one of the federation’s top priorities is people’s health. We have a duty to Saudi and we’re up to that challenge,” he said.
“We’re getting creative with online coaching. We’re recruiting freelance health professionals too,” he added.
“We’ve done a number of private sector partnerships to help us get the right content out at the right time,” Prince Khaled said.
“The positive side of all this is that I think this is something with a long-term health impact. People are now thinking about how nutrition and physical activity impact immunity. This is exactly how we want people to think: Be healthy, eat well, live well, and you’re fortified to some degree.”


Chilean soccer team Colo Colo to challenge ban imposed after two teenage fans were killed

Updated 20 sec ago
Follow

Chilean soccer team Colo Colo to challenge ban imposed after two teenage fans were killed

“It is a hard penalty for Colo Colo and we will appeal,” team president Edmundo Valladares said
“We hope that we can overturn it, at least in part“

SANTIAGO: Chilean club Colo Colo said on Thursday they will appeal a ruling that they must play five home matches in continental competition without fans and that their supporters will be banned from the next five away matches.
South American soccer’s governing body CONMEBOL confirmed the bans Wednesday after two teenage fans were killed in a crush ahead of a Copa Libertadores match last month.
“It is a hard penalty for Colo Colo and we will appeal,” team president Edmundo Valladares said. “We hope that we can overturn it, at least in part.”
Two fans died before the start of a Copa Libertadores match between Colo Colo and Fortaleza of Brazil near Santiago’s Estadio Monumental on April 10. According to authorities, a group of fans attempted to force their way into the stadium and tore down one of the venue’s protective fences. The victims were reportedly trapped beneath them.
“Let’s also hope that this experience serves to ... make fans more aware,” Valladares added.
CONMEBOL also ruled that Fortaleza won the match 3-0 and Colo Colo must pay a fine of $80,000.
“The penalty is hard — it hurts us on the field if we lose 3-0 and the economic side also hits us. But we will present the best appeal possible,” Valladares said.
Colo Colo, the winningest club in Chile with 32 league championships, is last in its group in Copa Libertadores after the first three rounds.

Verstappen awaits birth of first child, misses Miami media day

Updated 01 May 2025
Follow

Verstappen awaits birth of first child, misses Miami media day

  • The 27-year-old’s partner is Kelly Piquet
  • The Dutch driver is third overall after five races

MIAMI: Four times Formula One world champion Max Verstappen was withdrawn from scheduled media commitments at the Miami Grand Prix on Thursday as the Red Bull driver awaited the birth of his first child.
The 27-year-old’s partner is Kelly Piquet, daughter of Brazil’s triple world champion Nelson, who already has a daughter from a previous relationship with Russian former F1 driver Daniil Kvyat.
A team spokesman said all was well and Verstappen “will attend track tomorrow for the race weekend.”
Friday has a sole practice session ahead of sprint qualifying, with a 100km sprint race followed by regular qualifying on Saturday before Sunday’s race around the Hard Rock Stadium.
The Dutch driver is third overall after five races, 12 points behind McLaren’s Australian championship leader Oscar Piastri.


Cricket still able to accommodate old traditions and new styles

Updated 01 May 2025
Follow

Cricket still able to accommodate old traditions and new styles

  • A generation that grew up with the rise of T20 cricket may be unaware what declaration cricket means

LONDON: In cricketing history, the exploits of Vaibhav Suryavanshi are assured of a prime place. At 14 years of age, he scored a century in 35 deliveries for the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League on April 28, 2025.

The outing was only his third IPL match, having memorably hit the first ball he received on his debut for six. The century was the second-fastest in IPL history. The attack Suryavanshi plundered for 11 sixes and seven fours contained established internationals such as Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan. 

Suryavanshi has also shown his talents with a 58-ball hundred for India U-19s against Australia U-19s in an unofficial Test in Chennai last October. He has scored half-centuries at U-19 level against Sri Lanka and the UAE, as well as 71 off 42 balls for Bihar against Broda in India's domestic 50-over competition. This is good to hear in an era when T20 cricket is fast becoming cricket’s dominant format, threatening to obscure the longer formats.

It occurred to me that the generation that has grown up with the rise of T20 cricket may be unaware what declaration cricket means. Declarations are not usually a feature of short-format cricket but they are available in Test match and first-class cricket matches in which both teams can bat twice. A declaration is a strategic tool, when the batting team decides to end its innings before all players are out. There are various circumstances when this may be relevant, but it is usually to try and enforce a victory.

A common reason for declaring is to set a target for the opposition to chase. By declaring at a certain point, the captain aims to give the opposition a difficult, but achievable, target in the time remaining. This encourages the opposition to take risks while chasing the score, increasing the likelihood of them losing wickets. Several variables need to be taken into account by the captain who is considering a declaration. These include the time remaining in the match, pitch conditions — if it is deteriorating, for example — strength of the opposition, weather forecasts and the level of team support for the decision.

A recent example of a declaration that did not work out satisfactorily was that made by Nottinghamshire against Warwickshire in the County Championship. The latter were bowled out for 97 in their first innings. Nottinghamshire then amassed 367, but rather slowly at the end of the innings. Warwickshire, trailing by 274 on first innings, entered the fourth and final day on 163 for six in their second innings.

But rain, which was forecast, prevented play until 15.45, leaving Nottinghamshire’s bowlers just 36 overs to bowl out their opponents on a benign pitch. They failed to do so against some obdurate batting and were left to rue a failure to press home their advantage through an earlier declaration.

Declaration is both an art and a science. Vast amounts of data are available in today’s game to analysts to determine optimum times for declaration, but the ultimate decision rests with the captain and coach.

Three hundred years ago, it rested with the captain, based upon his assessment of prevailing conditions, perhaps with input from trusted colleagues. Declaration was the buttress of the game. It remained so, in my experience, in southern England into the early 1970s before league cricket, with its limitations or prohibition on declarations, became the norm, spreading from the north and midlands.

Throughout this period of change there has been a resistant strand. Perhaps, on reflection, not resistant but a desire to carry on an ageing tradition of declaration cricket, unaffiliated to formalised league cricket. Recently, I was able to witness an example of this. Tim Peters, a member of the cup-winning Drifters team in Chiang Mai, invited me to attend a match between the Royal Household Cricket Club and a wandering team, the Invalids, for whom he was playing.

This arcane, fascinating, part of cricket’s ecosystem, is far removed from Suryavanshi’s IPL feat. The setting was pastoral, in the shadow of Windsor Castle, adjoined by paddocks where the previous monarch’s horses pranced at will. After negotiating security, I wondered, on approaching the ground through long leafy driveways, if the match would be declaration based. Surely it would be, in time-honored tradition.

The Invalids CC is a wandering team. It has no home ground. There are a decreasing number of such fascinating clubs. The oldest one is I Zingari, founded in 1845 by a group of young aristocrats whose intention was to own no cricket ground of their own, but sought to foster and spread the spirit of amateur cricket at any country house where the hosts would provide hospitality and generosity. In recognition of this, the hosts would not be asked to provide any “professional,” paid bowlers, as was the custom at the time.        

The origins of the Invalids CC were different. It was founded in 1919 by J.C. Squire, poet, critic and editor of the London Mercury magazine. The name was given in honor of several players wounded in the First World War, while the chosen club colours, inspired by army officers’ hospital pyjamas, were hospital blue and old gold. A pair of crossed crutches was chosen as the club’s crest. In the early days, Squire assembled a team of writers, journalists and actors, whose thirst for the game exceeded their abilities.

Their opponents were mainly village sides and this is still largely the case today. Although the Royal Household ground is not a part of a village it carries a similar ambience. The club was founded in 1905 by King Edward VII. Its pavilion displays photographs and autographs of famous players, artifacts from previous matches, tours and visiting teams. One of these was the Vatican Cricket Club. In a moment of serendipity, a frame enclosed a bat signed by Pope Francis hung on the wall. It was the day of his funeral.

On the field, the match was declaration based. The Royal Household declared on 119 for nine wickets on the stroke of the cut-off time when tea was to be taken. After a fine English tea, the Invalids collapsed to 14 for four. A recovery was achieved and 35 runs were required from the last six overs, only two Invalids wickets remaining. At this point the home team adopted a field setting in which almost all fielders were on the boundary.

Those who know only of T20 cricket would have been puzzled. In that format, there is a limit on the number of boundary fielders and a stipulation that there must be a certain number of fielders within a 30-metre circle drawn from the centre of the pitch. This is a restriction that has crept into most league cricket but has been resisted by those seeking to preserve old traditions. At Windsor the old tactic worked for the home team as the remaining Invalids batters failed to outmanoeuvre the cunning field settings, losing the match by a few runs. 

The combined runs in the match amounted to 231 scored from close to 500 deliveries. The contrast with Suryavanshi’s feat is stark. Cricket has a rich and long history. At Windsor a part of that was being preserved, but societal change has created very different environment in which the game’s new history is being written by prodigies such as a 14-year-old Indian.


University Dodgeball Championship launches in 3 Saudi cities

Updated 01 May 2025
Follow

University Dodgeball Championship launches in 3 Saudi cities

  • Scheme promotes dodgeball, supports the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 in the sporting sector
  • Federation to use competition as platform for talent discovery, development

RIYADH: The Saudi Dodgeball Federation and the Saudi Federation for University Sports are launching the Men’s University Dodgeball Championship, a two-day tournament that will be held in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam starting Friday.
A strategic partnership between the two federations, the initiative aims to promote the sport of dodgeball and support the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 in the sporting sector, a media statement said on Thursday.
It also aims to foster a culture of physical activity and broaden sports participation within the university community.
Dar Al Uloom University in Riyadh will host the capital’s tournament on Friday, featuring five teams: three from King Saud University and two from Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University.
Meanwhile, the Jeddah International College’s sports hall hosts four participants representing the University of Jeddah, Effat University, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, and Jeddah International College.
The third leg of the championship will take place on Saturday at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in Dhahran, featuring teams from the Arab Open University, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, Al-Ghad College and the host university.
The university championship series represent a major step forward in expanding dodgeball’s presence in Saudi universities. It reflects the growing momentum of the sport, fueled by increasing student participation following recent awareness events.
The SDF will use the competitions as a platform for talent discovery and development, laying the groundwork for international representation and instilling a strong sports culture among college students.


Bayer Leverkusen sign highly rated teenager Ibrahim Maza from Hertha Berlin

Updated 01 May 2025
Follow

Bayer Leverkusen sign highly rated teenager Ibrahim Maza from Hertha Berlin

  • The 19-year-old Maza, an attacking midfielder, signed a contract through June 2030
  • “Maza is currently one of the most interesting young attacking players,” Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said

BERLIN: Bayer Leverkusen have snapped up highly rated teenager Ibrahim Maza from second-division club Hertha Berlin in their first signing for next season.
The 19-year-old Maza, an attacking midfielder, signed a contract through June 2030, the 2024 Bundesliga champion said on Thursday.
Kicker magazine reported the clubs agreed on a transfer fee of around 12 million euros ($13.6 million) for the player.
It promises to be the start of a busy summer at Leverkusen with key players including Jonathan Tan set to leave, uncertainty over the future of star Florian Wirtz, and coach Xabi Alonso expected to leave amid links to former club Real Madrid.
Former Barcelona coach Xavi and Erik ten Hag, who was previously in charge of Manchester United, are reportedly candidates to succeed Alonso, who led unbeaten Leverkusen to a league and cup double last season.
The Berlin-born Maza became Hertha’s most promising youth player after joining the capital club’s junior ranks from local club Reinickendorfer Füchse in 2016.
Hertha were relegated from the Bundesliga in 2023 — Maza scored in the club’s last game in the division — and he became one of the team’s key attacking threats in the second division where the 1.8-meter right-footed player scored five goals and set up five more this season.
“Maza is currently one of the most interesting young attacking players,” Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said. “Ibrahim suits us and our style of football. He has outstanding technical skills, can dribble past defenders, and he has an eye for his teammates, which he knows how to use brilliantly.”
Maza played for Germany Under-18s through Under-20s before opting to represent Algeria. He turned down previous offers to leave Hertha and extended his contract with the club in August last year to 2027, but Hertha’s financial difficulties meant he was bound to leave sooner rather than later.
“As a Berliner, the greatest thing for me was to become a professional player at Hertha BSC and to be able to wear the (Hertha) flag on my chest in Olympiastadion,” Maza said in a Hertha statement. “I’m grateful now that the club are giving me the chance to take the next step at the highest level in Leverkusen.”
Hertha said they will give Maza “a fitting farewell” before he leaves. There are still three rounds of the second division remaining and Hertha have two games at home.