*Semi-final line-up decided for Wheelchair Basketball

*The Emperor, Fahood Zabeel stay unbeaten in Volleyball

 DUBAI: Spanish players dominated clinching both titles as the curtains fell on the FIP Rise Dubai International Padel Championships held as part of the 11th Nad Al Sheba Sports Tournament, late on Sunday.

Lucia Perez Parra and Laura Luyan Rodriguez from Spain combined to beat the French-Spaniard combination of Wendy Barsoti and Catarina Castro Vilela 6-4, 6-2 for the women’s crown after Ramiro Jesus Valenzuela of Argentina and Spaniard Pol Hernandez Alvarez had claimed the men’s title with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Pedro Araujo and Miguel Deus.

Earlier in the semi-finals, the Portuguese pair of Araujo and Deus had beaten fancied Sergio Icardo and Francisco Jurado Sosa of Spain in a gruelling three sets, while Valenzuela and Alvarez had defeated Thomas Vanbauce and Maxime Joris of France in straight sets to advance to the final.

Sheikh Saeed bin Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum, President of the Emirates Padel Federation, presented the winners with their cash awards and trophies in the company of Abdulla bin Sougat, member of the Board of Directors of Emirates Padel Federation and Nasser Aman Al Rahma, Assistant Secretary-General, Dubai Sports Council, after the finals.

Fohood Zabeel in control

Fohood Zabeel ensured their superiority with a hard-fought 3-2 win against Alameed in Group A action of the volleyball tournament at the Nad Al Sheba Sports Complex Hall.

With man of the match Mathijs Desmet in full flow with 15 points and Luca Porro playing the perfect foil with 13 points and three clear serves, Fohood Zabeel was served well with Fabian Plak and Francesco Zoppellari’s fine blocking prowess at the net to run away winners 25-27, 25-21, 21-25, 27-25, 15-10.

The Emperor also made their intentions clear in the second Group A encounter with a 3-0 (27-25, 25-18, 25-20) demolition of Zabeel 1 and remain as the second unbeaten team in the group.

Strong start to Tug-of-War

The tug of war championship witnessed strong competitions between the participating teams, which numbered 44 teams competing in three categories: the community category, the government departments and institutions category, and the junior category.

The Emirates Foundation for Institutional Education and the National Guard opened their campaigns with wins in the Tug-Of-War competition.

Participating in the Government Departments and Institutions category, the Emirates Foundation defeated the team representing Dubai Municipality while the National Guard beat the Land Forces.

The was victory for hosts Nad Al Sheba Complex as they got the better of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), while the Civil Defence team defeated Dubai Customs and the Sharjah Emiri Guard team got past Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Services and Ministry of Defence sailed past the Dubai Police team to all register wins.

There was excitement in the Community category with the Falcons scoring past the Mighty Bull Patriots, Zabeel Studio beating AG Stars Academy, the Storm defeating Impossible, while the Kerala Kings sailed past the Desert Group.

Others winning were the RBM team against Al Wathba, the Blue World Gym against Al Fursan, Protein House against Nad Al Sheba team and the Al Jarahah team defeating the AG team. In other encounters, the Nas team defeated the On Team, the Gorillaz team beat the Desert Storm and the Super Team also got past the Dutco Construction Group.

In the Junior category, the Al Warqaa Team won over the Sharjah Academy of Police Sciences, the Sharjah Self-Defence Club defeated A25, Zabeel Studio team beat the NAS Juniors and Ahmed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum School skipped past the Al Wathba junior team.

All set for Wheelchair Basketball semis

Meanwhile, the semi-final line-up of the Wheelchair Basketball fell in place with Dubai Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship earning the right to meet Dubai Courts, while Dubai Ambulance Corporation will clash against Dubai Police General Headquarters, on Tuesday (March 26).

In Sunday night’s action in the fifth and final preliminary round matches, the Dubai Police General Headquarters team secured a strong 38-22 win over Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) after leading 18-9 at the end of the first period.

The Dubai Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship got the better of Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) 33-29 to top Group A and seal their spot in the last four. The team representing DEWA had to stay content in third place with 6 points, followed by Dubai Municipality in fourth with 5 points and the Roads and Transport Authority at the bottom with 4 points.

In Group B action, the Dubai Ambulance Corporation team defeated Al Bustan Center and Residence 28-12, while Dubai Courts stopped the Community Development Authority 25-13 to book their positions.

Dubai Ambulance topped the group with 8 points, followed by Dubai Courts (7 points), while Mai Dubai finished third (6 points) followed by Al Bustan Center and Residence (5 points) and the Community Development Authority finished fifth with 4 points.

The fight for third place will happen at the Dubai Club for People with Determination on Wednesday, while the final will be held at the Nad Al Sheba Sports Complex on Thursday.

Launched and supported by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council, the 11th Ramadan Sports Tournament will conclude with the volleyball final on March 31.

Held under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman Dubai Sports Council, the largest sports tournament of its kind during the holy month of Ramadan at the NAS Sports Complex, is conducted under the slogan “Limitless Capabilities.”

Organised under the auspices of the Dubai Sports Council (DSC), this year’s sports fiesta has nine different sports disciplines, including Volleyball, Padel, Jiu-Jitsu, Fencing, Wheelchair Basketball, Road Race, Cycling, Tug-of-War and an Obstacle Challenge.