Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, May 6, 2020: The United Arab Emirates Jiu-Jitsu Federation (UAEJJF) became the first national sporting body to reduce coronavirus lockdown restrictions after resuming training for the national team at the Mubadala Arena last Saturday, May 2.
The 70-strong camp included core team members and age group athletes. They will continue training twice a day after the federation took the decision to open the floor.
According to Abdulmunam Al Hashemi, chairman of the UAEJJF, the federation arrived at the decision to resume the training camp following a video conference with board members last week.
“We have taken the UAE government’s directives to take every precaution to resume our training activities with a camp for the national team members before we open the floor to the rest of the jiu-jitsu community in the country,” he said.
Al Hashemi had earlier announced the 12th Abu Dhabi World Professional Championship, the highlight of the UAEJJF’s calendar, will take place in November.
Ramon Lemos, the head coach of the national team, was naturally delighted to have his squads back in training, but insisted combating the virus on all fronts remains the biggest challenge.
“We have to combat the coronavirus first and hopefully that will be behind us soon,” Lemos said. “I always believe in having my squad to be ready to compete at any time when they are asked to do so. Thinking on those lines, I’m glad we started this training camp.”
Source: The National