By becoming the home of modern sports, KAEC is now firmly on the map as a destination for world champions to compete and families to keep fit and healthy – from kite-surfing to international golf tournaments, drone racing, deep-sea fishing, motor sports and jet skiing.
The provision of sports activities and international sporting events took a huge leap forward in 2019.
Taking part in sporting activities and being active is more than a way of life – it is central to the maintenance of a happy and healthy community. It is also one of the key tenets of Saudi Vision 2030, which includes ‘encouraging widespread and regular participation in sports and athletic activities, working in partnership with the private sector to establish additional dedicated facilities and programs . . . we aspire to excel in sports and be among the leaders in selected sports regionally and globally’.
As 2019 kicked off, KAEC partnered with local sports foundations and bodies, including the General Sports Authority, to build a strategic framework for investment in the sports sector and the infrastructure needed to bring it to life.
A hole in one
A few weeks into the year, the city hosted Saudi Arabia’s first international golf tournament, held at the Royal Greens Golf & Country Club.
Golfing superstars included world number one Justin Rose, the top American trio of Dustin Johnson (who came first), Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau, as well as the Masters Champion, Patrick Reed.
These major names – and many more – teed up for four days of world-class golf along the glittering coast of the Red Sea, attracting global media attention and 35,000 fans from around the world.
Early figures from the January 2020 tournament suggest that the visitor numbers will more than double to at least 70,000.
As we look ahead, KAEC’s reputation for world-class golfing facilities will play an important role in attracting not only global champions and fans but businesses looking for alternative corporate away days, corporate events and conferences. Attracting the business community to visit KAEC where they can take part in sports activities and enjoy the city is a key part of KAEC’s strategy for economic development and achieving return on investment.
Hitting the seas
Saudi Arabia’s first kite-surfing festival followed in June, held at the newly-opened YAM Beach in partnership with the Saudi Sailing Federation and General Sports Authority. The festival included training clinics, a championship race, family fun activities and a variety of beach and water games.
The event was part of Jeddah Seasons 2019, staged in partnership with the Saudi Sailing Federation and General Sports Authority and attracting professionals and enthusiasts from all over the world.
Taking advantage of the crystal-clear waters of the Red Sea, in July KAEC hosted the first Red Sea International Sport Fishing Tournament. With the promise of a fishing and cultural experience unlike any other, 27 teams from 26 countries participated in the tournament, in addition to 21 local and regional teams. It showcased the diversity of game-fish found in the Red Sea, and a trio of judges flown in from the Maldives, the UK and South Africa made the event even more of an international affair.
This was the first time that a game-fishing tournament had been held in Saudi Arabia.
Having attracted international media attention and the eyes of the competitive world of game-fishing, the tournament positioned KAEC firmly in the minds of international visitors, competitive game anglers and visitors from across the Kingdom and beyond.
The competition, which was split into trolling, jigging, and popping categories, was held under strict Saudi laws for banned fish catches to ensure that sharks, rays, turtles, dolphins and other protected species were excluded. Strict environmental and wildlife protection laws automatically disqualified competitors who accidentally mutilate fish, hooked or entangle a fish on more than one line, or failed to document their catch. These rules are part of KAEC’s commitment to ethical and sustainable sports.
Summer sports
With the heat of the summer months making outdoor sports more challenging, a program of water sports was developed in 2019 to help families and visitors cool down and stay fit and healthy. Water sport activities for children included donut boats, swan paddle boats, banana boat rides and a splash pad. For the grown-ups, jet skis, water skis and diving and snorkeling trips complemented the official opening of KAEC’s first free beach, YAM Beach.
The value of sports
In addition to the intrinsic societal value that sport – and sportsmanship – brings, it is an important business sector that offers enormous scope for economic development. The National Transformation Program 2020 states that a main objective within the sports sector is to achieve ‘…improved return on investment in sports clubs and facilities’.
As the sector grows during the coming period, it will provide ever-greater opportunities for local sports enthusiasts to invest their energies and passions in building their own sports enterprises within the supply chain, which will serve the National Transformation Program well as create jobs and economic growth that will benefit all.
