Bahrain Falcon Hunting Tournament to start on Thursday

Manama, Jan.6 (BNA): Under the Patronage of HH Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Representative of His Majesty the King for Charity Works and Youth Affairs, Chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports and President of Bahrain Olympic Committee, and in cooperation with Nasser Bin Hamad Foundation, Bahrain Tournament for Falcon and Hunting begins on Thursday in Al Sabkha area opposite to Bahrain International Endurance Village and will continue to the 13thof February, 2016. HH Shaikh Nasser previously approved the contests of the tournament that will include different categories for falcons, a traditional one kilometre Arabian horse race, Saluki dogs hunting contest for one kilometre and a shooting competition for contesters aged between 7 – 13 years. Following the instructions of HH Shaikh Nasser the tournament will continue for five weeks. The first week will include the competitions of HH Shaikh Faisal bin Khalid Al Khalifa Cup, HH Shaikh Hamad bin Nasser AL Khalifa Cup, HH Shaikh Mohammed bin Nasser Cup and HH Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalid Al Khalifa Cup for falconry. The competitions of the first week will continue on Thursday, Friday and Saturda and will also include a traditional Arabian horse race and Saluki dogs hunting competition. The competitions of the second week will be held between the 14th and 16th of January and will include the same competitions. The third week will be held between the 28th and 30th of January and has been allocated for contesters from GCC countries. The fourth week will be held between the 4th and 6th of February and the final week contests will be held on the 11th, 12thand 13th of the same month. HH Shaikh Faisal bin Rashid Al Khalifa, President of Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation (BREEF) lauded the efforts and initiatives of HH Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa to promote and preserve traditional sports and games among the youth, adding that these sports are inherited from the ancestors and resemble the deep-rooted traditions of the people of GCC countries. On their part, members of the Supreme Organising Committee of the tournament announced that all final preparations for the contests have been taken. The committee also said that the events of the tournament will be covered by Bahrain Sports Channel and Al Sahraa Channel, adding that the tournament will be accompanied by an analytic studio and would be aired live on Bahraini News Agency website on www.bna.bh.