Khalid bin Hamad attends first local amateur boxing tournament

Manama, Nov. 12 (BNA): His Highness Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, First Deputy President of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports and Honorary President of Bahrain Mixed Martial Arts Federation, attended the first local amateur boxing tournament organized by Harley-Davidson under the supervision of the Bahrain Mixed Martial Arts Federation. The event was held at Bahrain International Circuit, home of motorsport in the Middle East, on Friday, November 11. His Highness was welcomed by Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa, CEO of Bahrain International Circuit, HE Shaikh Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, Director of the HOG Bahrain Chapter, HE Colonel Khalid Abdulaziz Al Khayat, President of the Bahrain Mixed Martial Arts Federation and members of the Federation and employees of Harley-Davidson. HH Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa watched the matches which included 20 amateur boxers from different clubs in Bahrain. The tournament is a debut event for local boxing tournaments in the Kingdom of Bahrain where His Highness praised the positive participation of the boxers and the outstanding performance in the first edition of this event. His Highness affirmed that the goal of hosting the tournament was to spread the culture of this sports within Bahrain's sports scene, which witnesses a wide follow-up by the youth. The game has managed to build a strong base with fans in different countries of the world as well as earn the confidence of the International Olympic Committee to be part of the Olympic Games. Al Khayat: The tournament achieves the vision of His Highness Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa For his part, HE Colonel Khalid Abdulaziz Al Khayat, President of the Bahrain Mixed Martial Arts Federation, expressed thanks and support to HH Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa for his support and follow-up of the first local boxing tournament, stressing that His Highness is always keen on supporting activities of the federation. He also said that the federation seeks to implement many activities which include the establishment of local tournaments with the goals of realizing the vision of HH Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa of developing this sport. Tournament programme The event opened at 4 pm with 20 boxers participating in 10 matches and ended with the Bahrain Mixed Martial Arts President awarding the winners, in addition to the referees and the organizers. He also gave a speech which explained the vision of the sport of boxing.