?Muharraq Club basketball team has finalised its preparations for the second edition of the Arab Women’s Sports Tournament, to be held in Sharjah for the second successive time from February 2 to 12.
The team has been training on a daily basis at the club premises in Arad in presence of all their top 11 players participating in the tournament. They include Laila Mohammed Hassan, Fatima Mohammed Hassan, Mariam Haider Mardana, besides professionals Carolina of Argentina and Corina of Canada.
Other players are Mariam Khalid Abdullah, Fatima Adel Asadi, Hessa Fareed Al Jaber, Zahra Isa Turani, Dalia Abdullah Najem and Hanin Abdulaziz Abdulrahman.
Muharraq club administrator Layla Nasser Juma said the team is looking to achieve good results in the upcoming event, noting that all the players have set their sights on winning a place on the podium and make their nation proud.
Layla stressed that her team has a great chance to compete for the title due to their performance and quality of the players showed during the recently-concluded Bahrain Women’s League, which the club won with ease.
The Muharraq official praised the skills of the team’s professionals, noting that Carolina has already been with the team in a number of training sessions, while Corina is yet to joining the team training just before heading for the tournament.
She extended her appreciation to Bahrain Olympic Committee women’s sports committee chairwoman Shaikha Hayat bint Abdulaziz Al Khalifa, who is constantly following up the team’s progress and preparations.
The Bahraini representatives are scheduled to leave for the UAE on January 31, with Salman Abdulghani Al Maatoq heading the delegation, with the rest of the delegation being physiotherapy specialist Ivani and international referee Abdulreda Al Ekrawi.
Bahrain will be competing in six sporting disciplines in total in this tournament, namely volleyball, athletics, table tennis, shooting, fencing and basketball.
Al Ahli will spearhead Bahrain in the volleyball tournament, Bahrain Club in table tennis, Bahrain Fencing Club in fencing, Bahrain Shooting Club in shooting while Al Shababa Club is to represent the kingdom in the athletics championship.
Athletes from 14 Arab countries, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the UAE, Yemen, Egypt, Morocco, Lebanon, Libya, Palestine, Sudan, Jordan and Iraq, are in the fray for the 11-day women’s tournament.
They will be competing in seven sporting events, namely volleyball, basketball, athletics, table tennis, fencing and archery.
Twelve sports facilities are preparing to host the training and matches in various events. The tournament will take place at several locations around Sharjah, including The Higher Colleges of Technology Sharjah, Al Shaab Cultural and Sports Club, and Al Thiqah Club for Handicapped.
Other venues are Al Manar School, Al Andalus School, The American University of Sharjah, Sharjah Ladies Club, Al Dhaid Sports and Cultural Club, and Sharjah University.