Students from ASPIRE, the Qatar-based Academy for Sports Excellence, seized the opportunity to demonstrate their talent and technique to a public audience during a footballing masterclass in Dubai on Sunday as part of a unique Football Festival.
Members of ASPIRE’s team, led by Head Football Coach Michael Browne, travelled to the UAE to take part in the event, a one day football extravaganza involving footballing legends from across Asia and leading Premiership clubs in England, organised around the annual Soccerex convention.
Before the masterclass, the ASPIRE youngsters watched as Team Asia, Liverpool and Manchester United players battled for top honours in a five-a-side tournament at the Mall of the Emirates.
Former international stars on show included Iranian Ali Daei, the world’s all time record goal scorer in international matches, former England captain Bryan Robson and Liverpool and England legend John Barnes.
Coaches with ASPIRE led their footballers through a rigorous training routine on the indoor pitch before they played an exhibition match against the national UAE Under-14’s side.
“Being part of this footballing experience and seeing some of the all time greats displaying their skills is a wonderful opportunity for the students,” said Dr Thomas Flock, Director General of ASPIRE.
“These former international players have achieved great success and set standards that our students wish to reach. I hope the demonstration our students put on for the public shows the talent they possess to help them reach their goals and become the champions of the future.”
About ASPIRE
ASPIRE, the Academy for Sports Excellence, Doha, was created with the dual aims of identifying and transforming promising student athletes into world renowned champions across a wide range of sports and to act as a beacon to draw sporting culture into the centre of life in Qatar and the surrounding region.
The Academy is distinguished by a philosophy which aims to develop the whole student, providing them with full academic, social and sporting development.
Unrivalled facilities mark the Academy out as one of the world’s foremost sporting and educational institutions, and entice an ever increasing number of visitors from across the spectrum of world sports to use or simply view them. These same facilities will also play host to events during the forthcoming Asian Games 2006.
With one indoor and seven outdoor football pitches, athletics tracks, an Olympic-sized swimming pool, diving pool, combat arenas, gymnastics arena, specially designed weight rooms, lecture halls, dormitories to accommodate what will eventually become 1,000 students, a medical centre and more besides, much beneath the world’s largest purpose built indoor sports dome, every aspect of the development of elite athletes is catered for. ASPIRE is a place for those who dare to dream.
ASPIRE TODAY, INSPIRE TOMORROW
www.aspire.qa
