Bahrain ready to break futsal record

Manama : The Kingdom of Bahrain will soon be breaking Guinness World Record for the longest one-day futsal tournament this weekend.

The first-ever Bahrain International Futsal Challenge, which kicks off on Friday at the Bahrain Sports Federation for people with disabilities hall in Riffa, will go on for continuous 24 hours.

More than 216 players, making up 18 teams, will compete in knock-out matches to win the prestigious title of this first-of- its-kind futsal championship held in Bahrain.

The event, one of many initiatives and programmes set up by the Bahrain Olympic Committee in 2018, also aims to promote tourism in Bahrain as well as the civilized face of the nation, and involve all segments of the Bahrain community in this competition.

Tournament details were revealed at a media conference hosted by Ramada City Centre Hotel in Seef area yesterday.

Supreme Council for Youth and Sports assistant general secretary and Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) general secretary Abdulrahman Askar started the conference by emphasizing the efforts of the organizing committee to prepare for this challenging task for Bahrain in a very short period.

“It was really remarkable how we managed to receive the targeted number of teams in just two days. Everyone here is excited and determined to break the Guinness World Record for the longest futsal tournament here in Bahrain,” said Askar.

Askar said he was proud to see that the tournament will be run by an all-Bahraini staff team, but noted at the same time that registration for the event was open to citizens and expats alike of different ages.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank all ministries for submitting their entries, as well as our sponsors E. K. Kanoo, Shoot sportswear, GPIC, Ramada City Centre and Applied Science University, and other authorities for their support to the organizing committee in making this challenging event possible,” said Askar.

On his part, Bahrain futsal team captain and organizer Mohammed Al Sharqawi made a presentation on the tournament rules and regulations.

“Each team is composed of 12 players, five of whom will start their knock-out format 40-minute matches, while the remaining seven will sit on the bench,” said Al Sharqawi.

“There is a specific time between each match so that we can achieve the targeted time of 23 hours of continuous matches. Our goal in this tournament is not to win or lose, but to break the World Guinness Record in futsal.”