The conclusion of the The Abu Dhabi Racket Club Open Squash Tournament

The Abu Dhabi Racket Club Open Squash Tournament was held at the Abu Dhabi Sports Club stadiums, in cooperation with the Abu Dhabi Sports Council, on 16 and 17 December, with the participation of 64 internationally-renowned players who represented 10 Arab and foreign countries.

World 23rd-ranked Egyptian Mustafa Al Sarti won the men’s title, surpassing his compatriot 318th-ranked Ali El Kawas, who finished second. The 130th-ranked Iraqi Mohamed Farman succeeded in grabbing third place at the expense of the Egyptian Fadi Tharwat.

The women's competitions witnessed more Egyptian control, as Farah Momen, ranked 87th in the world, succeeded in claiming the winner’s title in the final match against her compatriot, the Abu Dhabi Racket Club team’s Nadine Shahin, ranked 30th globally. The Egyptian dominance continued with Hana Hisham Ismail, ranked 124th globally, in third place, and Lujain Mohamed Hassan, in fourth.

Dr Hamad Al Mehyas, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Abu Dhabi Racket Club, described the current version of the tournament as a gateway to hosting future global championships, which would contribute to strengthening squash in the United Arab Emirates, and that the tournament underscored Abu Dhabi as an important destination for the sport’s international stars.

He added: "We succeeded in hosting 64 athletes from various countries, which is an important factor in the further growth of squash in Abu Dhabi."

Talal Al Hashemi, Executive Director of Sports Development Sector in the Abu Dhabi Sports Council, praised the success of the tournament in attracting a large amount of internationally-ranked players, stating: “This open tournament represents a distinguished sporting achievement that enhances the position of Abu Dhabi as a global capital of sports. We value the efforts made by the Abu Dhabi Racket Club and we look forward to more distinctive sporting events of this kind in the future."

Al Hashemi continued: "The tournament reflects Abu Dhabi's commitment to supporting and strengthening sport as part of its approach to expanding its practice among young men and women. The precise organisation and high level of this tournament contributes to attracting the stars of this sport and global interest towards squash in Abu Dhabi in the future."

The tournament was moderated by legendary Egyptian squash world champion Amir Wagih and supervised by Dr. Sherif Hamdy. The total financial prizes for the tournament amounted to AED 22,000 and were distributed amongst the top three winners of both categories.