Dubai will host this year's SportAccord Convention, the biggest networking event for leaders of international sport. More than 1,500 sporting leaders and decision makers will take part in the event, being held in the Middle East for the first time.

The Atlantis resort on Palm Jumeirah Island will be the venue for the SportAccord Convention, which runs from April 25 to 30. Delegates from over 100 international sports federations and organisations, will also take part.

Leading host is Dubai Sports Council, working with president of the Dubai Organising Committee for the 2010 SportAccord Convention, president of the International Equestrian Federation, member of the International Olympic Committee, Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein, wife of Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Princess Haya headed the top table at a press conference on Tuesday at which further details of the SportAccord Convention 2010 Dubai were unveiled.

She was joined by Dr Ahmed Al Sharif, secretary general of Dubai Sports Council and vice president of Dubai Organising Committee; Andrew Ryan, Association of Summer Olympic International Federations, a founding association of the Convention; and Anna Hellman, executive director of Lausanne, Switzerland-based SportAccord Convention.

In keeping with Dubai’s identity as an international hub, the SportAccord Convention 2010 conference themes are the changing geography of international sport and sport’s key role in the big issues on the global agenda.

Among the topics to be discussed at the convention include the role of sport as an agent of social change; sport in the Middle East; sport as a leader in sustainable development; autonomy of sport; and sponsorship in sport.

“Sport is of special importance in Dubai and we are delighted to have this unique opportunity to welcome our international sporting partners,” said Dr Sharif.

“The Convention is by far the world’s most important gathering of the international sport movement and Dubai will provide the ideal platform to explore sport-related partnerships and sport infrastructure development.”

Hellman said: “Not only is Dubai a leading trade, tourism and business hub, it is also a city with an enviable infrastructure as well as considerable experience of hosting world class events.  Being at the crossroads of east and west, Dubai provides a special opportunity to express the global role of our gathering for the decision makers of world sport.”

SportAccord will feature an exhibition, networking receptions and top-level conference sessions as well as the annual general meetings of sport governing bodies. There will also be the City Forum, focusing on the needs and concerns of international cities that bid for and host sporting events.

Underlining the importance of the event, Hellman added: “The Convention is held in a different country each year encompassing the congresses and general assemblies of international sports federations and their related associations. These federations hold the rights to scores of world championships and other annual sporting events.

“The Convention offers the international sports community an annual occasion to gather together in an authoritative networking environment to build relationships, expand horizons and broaden sport’s collective endeavours,” Hellman said.

Besides Princess Haya; the speakers list includes Sheikh Ahmed Al Fahad Al Sabah, president of the Olympic Council of Asia; Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary-General and president of the Global Humanitarian Forum; Sepp Blatter, president of FIFA; Christophe de Kepper, chief of staff of the International Olympic Committee; Romy Gai, CEO of the UAE Football League; Bernard Lapasset, chairman of the International Rugby Board; and Eduardo Paes, Mayor of Rio de Janeiro, host of the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Since SportAccord first took place in Madrid in 2003, the event has been held in Lausanne, Berlin, Seoul, Beijing, Athens, Denver and now Dubai for 2010.

The Convention receives the support of the International Olympic Committee and its President. “The event has evolved into a diverse community of people from across the sports spectrum and from all over the world, who value this unique opportunity to learn, to grow, and most of all to share,” Hellman said.

As the host of the 2010 SportAccord Convention, Dubai sees sport as a strategic component in its development agenda, Dr Sharif added.

'Dubai already hosts many world-renowned sporting and entertainment events and its attraction is further enhanced by high-profile venues including Meydan and Dubai Sports City,' he added.-TradeArabia News Service