Sports and Leisure
Introduction:
I interviewed my father, who is 62 years old, about the past
of sports and leisure in the UAE. I asked him a couple of questions about how
sports were handled 50 years ago in the UAE. What he told me gave me a great
understanding about sports especially camel riding.
1. What kinds of sport were available to the public in the UAE 50 years
ago?
There were many he
implied; besides camel riding, football, horse riding there was also swimming. However 50 years
ago is a little too much to state what kind of sports were there; our life was
very difficult in so many ways at that time.
2.
Have you decided to join
any clubs in the UAE?
Yes, I have been in some clubs in the past; one was called
Al Nadi Seyahi Club, which was close to Meridian Hotel and Abu Dhabi Mall. It
was one of the oldest clubs at that time especially in the 1990’s. I used to go
there to have some swimming lessons with your uncles.
3 Is this club still there
today?
Not anymore; really they took it down 8 years ago for more
projects in the country. I felt bad about it. It had so many memories and I had
so many friends I met there.
4.
Did the club afford just
swimming or were there a lot of games?
Aw the amount of sports they had was amazing at that time.
They had bowling, tennis, which your uncle loved playing, football, basketball,
squash, arcade games, billiards and much more. It was the place for kids and
grownups to hang around in besides malls.
5.
What happened to the club?
Did they move it?
The club was demolished in 2002; it was an old club, which
was in a strategic place in the tourist club area close to Meridian hotel and
Abu Dhabi mall. The reason for it to be removed was clearly unknown but the
government had plans for other projects. I heard they might open a new club
besides the Meridian but this might be only rumors.
Conclusion:
I had a chance to interview my father who is 62 years old
about any clubs that have been a big part of his life. He gave me some honest
opinions about, which club he went to and the sport he used to adore which was swimming.
