Al Qubaisi's team 'Al Abyad' triumph in Jiu-Jitsu Champions Challenge

Dubai - 'Al Abyad' prevailed over 2019 world champion Faisal Al Ketbi's 'Azraq' team by winning 14 of their 25 matchups

It was champions stuff as Asian Games medallist Mohammed Al Qubaisi's team came up with a stellar showing to clinch the inaugural edition of the Jiu-Jitsu Champions Challenge on Thursday.
The one-day tournament saw 50 of the UAE's top athletes taking part at the spectacular Jiu-Jitsu Arena in Abu Dhabi and Mohammed Al Qubaisi, who won the bronze in the men's 77kg category at the 2018 Asian Games, saw his team 'Al Abyad' prevail over 2019 world champion Faisal Al Ketbi's 'Azraq' team.
The Al Abyad team won 14 of their 25 matchups to top the points table. 
The winner of each fight was awarded 100 points, in case of a win by submission the winner was awarded an extra 50 points. Al Abyad team, consisting of Omar Al Fadhli, Mohammed Al Suwaidi, and Salem Mubarak Al Dhaheri in the adults category and Rashed Al Shehhi, Theyab Al Nuaimi and Faraj Al Awlaqi in the youth categories, racked up a total of 1600 points against Al Ketbi's side who managed 1250 points.
The Azraq team had a few notable performances with Sultan Al Hosani, Saeed Al Mazrouei, and Ali Al Bannai performing encouragingly in the adults category, while Omar Al Suwaidi, Mahdi Al Awlaqi and Saeed Al Kubaisi held their own in the youth categories.
The Challenge was organized by the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation, the governing body for the sport in the Emirates.
The tournament was organised in line with Federal and global Covid-19 health and safety protocols and saw prominent members of the UAE jiu-jitsu National team being pitted against each other. 
"Our athletes have wholeheartedly embraced their training schedules during the camp and the benefits were clearly visible on the mat," Abdul Munam Al Hashemi, President of the UAEJJF and the Ju-Jitsu Asian Union, Vice President of the International Ju-Jitsu Federation, said on Thursday.
"A number of young talented athletes gave a very good account of themselves last night and the emergence of Faisal Al Ketbi and Mohammed Al Qubaisi, two experienced campaigners, as guiding lights to the younger generation has been another encouraging sign," he added.
Meanwhile, Mubarak Al Menhali, technical director at UAEJJF, said that with the closed training camp coming to an end on May 24, the tournament had been an ideal platform to test the athletes. 
"Participating in the closed training camp has seen our athletes and coaching staff make a number of sacrifices. However, it was heartening to see all the hard work that has been put in paying off on the mat. The coaching staff has worked hard at helping ease the athletes back into a competitive mindset and we are now looking forward to building on these gains," Mubarak Al Menhali said.
james@khaleejtimes.com