The Al Forsan equestrian centre offers outdoor and indoor arenas. The Al Forsan equestrian centre offers outdoor and indoor arenas.

Fast Facts
Name: Al Forsan International Sports Resort
Location: Khalifa City Abu Dhabi
Size: 1.6 million square metres
Offically opened: November 2011
Soft opened: Quarter four, 2010
Staff: 270
Funded: Privately

 

Occupying 1.6 million square metres in Abu Dhabi’s Khalifa City, the new Al Forsan International Sports Resort is the first of its kind in the Middle East. Managing director Atef Nagib explains how the facility will help put the UAE on the world sporting map

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The hosting of the Global Champions Tour Final horse-jumping event from November 24-26 marked the official opening of Al Forsan, how many people attended?
Over the three days we had more than 6000 people from the UAE, and also the riders who came from around 15-16 countries.

Which are Al Forsan's target geographical markets?
We have people coming from the UAE, from all over the GCC and from Europe.

How many staff are currently employed at Al Forsan?
We are currently around 85% staffed, with almost 270 employees already onboard.

Do you use contract staff during such large events?
We subcontract some services such as housekeeping, landscaping and security to the same companies — so the temporary staff are not strangers — during large events, which works well.

What other international events do you expect to host?
We’re almost ready to finalise the World Paintball Championships and we’ve already committed to the World Wakeboarding Association (WWA) for the next three years. The Wake Park World Championships takes place from December 7-10. We also signed up for the Global Champions Tour for the next five years. This is all in addition to the national events.

Are the international events a major source of revenue for the resort?
The big events mentioned don’t make money — they are a bit of a financial burden, but they are there for the vision.

These events are for the ‘macro picture’ to promote the UAE and Abu Dhabi as a destination, ensuring a leading role in the [world] sports agenda. We try to get sponsors to minimise the costs we face.

The resort is located in the heart of the plan for Abu Dhabi’s visionary Khalifa City development. How does it fit into the wider Abu Dhabi 2030 Plan?
We have so many criteria to work on such as improving the lifestyles of the emirates’ residents — both nationals and expatriates.

The resort is somewhere a whole family can enjoy different kinds of sports or just relax and have a nice meal. It’s a place where we can exploit the talents of our kids and encourage them to compete on a professional level.

Furthermore, it will maintain the UAE on the international [sports and leisure] map as all our facilities are designed and built to exceed professional standards.

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