Saudi Sports For All
When Chris Lomax MBE and I embarked on this journey, we were resolute in our belief that the world is an amazing place, that it’s packed full of people who wish to contribute positively to humanity, and that we ourselves could add further value through collaboration with those great people.
Sitting here in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, having arrived back from Riyadh late last night, our beliefs have been strengthened and our excitement at the opportunities ahead of us has grown significantly.
On Sunday (the start of the Saudi working week) we met with the almost-entirely female team of their Saudi Sports for All Federation - الاتحاد السعودي للرياضة للجميع (SFA), to discuss all things community sport and physical activity in the Kingdom. Clearly this is a country looking to transform itself into global leader in physical activity and health, and the ambitions of the SFA team were inspiring to say the least.
Later in the week we were also privileged to spend time with Amer Alajmi Ph.D. from SAFFIR - Saudi Arabian Football Federation Institute of Research and Aalia Abdulaziz AlRasheed (Head of Women’s Football at the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF). As with all these conversations, and as per the opening paragraph of this blog, there are many things that we can learn from each other and collaboration is key.
We also spent time with Tom Walsh from the British Embassy, Donal McElwee from CAA Portas, and Clemmie Stewart - thanks everyone for your wonderful support of our ambitions (including also the many people not mentioned here).
Ultimately, we are all human beings and share a common and innate need to be outdoors, active, and social. And to quote Jo Cox (I think), we are far more united and have far more in common than that which divides us.
And if we step out into the world and spend time with actual real people, that becomes clearer by the day.
P.S. Thanks to everyone who's signed up to The Leeds Declaration on Community Sport for Development and Diplomacy. If you're interested in getting involved, you can find out more here: https://lnkd.in/e6d7SdR7