The inaugural Etihad Airways Junior Rugby Festival comes to a climax this weekend with the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Harlequins Junior Rugby Tournament.

The tournament follows the success of the Etihad Harlequins Rugby Schools, which saw 400 school children in Abu Dhabi being trained by coaches from English Premiership team Harlequins. Many youngsters will now look to showcase their skills in the junior tournament.

The Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Harlequins Junior Rugby Tournament is taking place at Al Ghazal Golf Club, Abu Dhabi on Friday 14 and Saturday 15 November. More than 1,700 youngsters, aged from six to 18 years old, will take part in a knockout competition during the weekend.

Teams taking part come from across the Arabian Gulf region including Bahrain, Kuwait and Doha as well as Syria.

Peter Baumgartner, Etihad Airways, executive vice president marketing and product, said: “The inaugural Etihad Airways Junior Rugby Festival has been a huge success and it has been great to see so many children taking part in the rugby schools and now the tournament.

“Sport always brings people together and so many youngsters, especially those new to rugby, have really enjoyed themselves. It is fantastic that we finish the festival with the Arabian Gulf region’s largest junior rugby tournament at our home-base here in Abu Dhabi.”

Richard Harris, chairman of the Abu Dhabi Harlequins Rugby Club, said: “The junior rugby tournament has grown year-on-year and we are delighted it has become part of the Etihad Airways Junior Rugby Festival. The amount of support all sponsors are providing will ensure it truly is the annual highlight of junior rugby within the Arabian Gulf region.”

Mohammed Al Mahmoud, Abu Dhabi Sports Council’s General Secretary, said: “The Junior Rugby Festival has been a great sporting initiative for Abu Dhabi and I was very proud of the number of local children taking part in last week’s Etihad Harlequins Rugby Schools.

Abu Dhabi Sports Council wishes to express its support and thanks Etihad Airways, Harlequins and all the event partners for leading the way with the Middle East’s youth rugby programme."

The Etihad Airways Junior Rugby Festival has been well supported by several companies in Abu Dhabi. Etihad would like to thank HSBC as presenting sponsor plus Abu Dhabi Airports Company, Abu Dhabi Sports Council, Norton Rose, Ali and Sons Co LLC and The National.

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