Shaikh Omar Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Vice-President of Bani Yas Sports and Cultural Club, has called for the introduction of foreign professionals in volleyball.
Shaikh Omar said that the participation of overseas professionals would result in the progress of the game and improvement in its standards for both the national and clubs teams.
"Our game is progressing steadily and the national team has achieved good results in the Gulf Cup last December. The professionals will help in increasing the momentum of this progress and both the clubs and the national teams will benefit from their participation," Shaikh Omar explained.
"Volleyball is popular game in the UAE. Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan was an avid volleyball player and used to practice whenever he had the time off. The UAE national team finished third in Doha, while the soccer team failed," Shaikh Omar added.
Professional players used to take part in the UAE league in the 70's. Their participation was terminated early in the 80's along with other disciplines. While the UAE FA later permitted the clubs to use professionals during the late 90's, the other disciplines are yet to take a similar step.
Gulf News
