The Supreme Organising Committee (SOC) of the Arab Women's Sports Tournament (AWST) has held its recent preparatory meeting to launch its largest tournament ever. Held at the Sharjah Department of eGovernment headquarters, the meeting was headed by Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Head of the Committee. It addressed the importance of public and private partnerships and initiatives, the success of recent objectives and a series of workshops including anti-doping and the dangers of performance-enhancing drugs.

The fourth edition of the event, which will take place in Sharjah from 2-12 February 2018, was attended by HE Nada Askar Al Naqbi, Director General of Sharjah Women's Sport Foundation (SWSF), Deputy Head of AWST's Supreme Organising Committee and heads and members of organising and executive committees.

Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Sultan Al Qasimi said: “There is a tremendous joint effort by all those involved to make sure the AWST is an event that meets very highest standards of world class competition. The collaboration across the board with private institutions and the focus of a common goal for success will make this tournament a benchmark for women’s sport around the region and beyond.”

He added: “This teamwork and these relationships are an excellent reflection of the spirit of Sharjah in coming together to achieve its aspirations and increase its ambitions.”

Sheikh Khalid Al Qasimi stressed that the success of the tournament is a success for the UAE, because of its contribution to enhancing the position of women's sport at regional and international levels. It also follows Sharjah’s dedication to maintaining a policy of environmental sustainability by introducing an almost completely paperless event where communications will be via digital and online methods and any printed material will use recycled paper.

For her part, HE Nada Askar Al Naqbi commended the unparalleled support of the wife of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Muhammad Al Qasimi, Chairperson of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs (SCFA) and Chairperson of Sharjah Women’s Sports Foundation, who has a significant positive impact on AWST in terms of the number and the level of participants, enhancing its position as one of the most prestigious and important women's sports tournaments in the Arab world.

As a mark of its commitment to the international standards of organising tournaments, AWST's SOC announced that it has commissioned Barcelona Laboratory as the primary anti-doping laboratory, and Thailand Laboratory and India Laboratory as two alternative anti-doping laboratories to examine participants' samples. During the meeting, the SOC also recommended organising a workshop, in collaboration with the Anti-Doping Commission and the Leaders Qualification Centre, for UAE teams participating in the tournament to promote awareness about the negative effects and health consequences of steroid abuse.