Sports veterans honoured

01 : 49 PM - 06/06/2016 Manama, June 6 (BNA): Seventy-six of Bahrain’s most prominent sports officials were honoured at the awards ceremony of Shaikh Isa bin Rashid Al Khalifa Award for Voluntary Work. This award was named after Shaikh Isa bin Rashid Al Khalifa, second deputy-chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports (SCYS), and Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) honorary president, who is known as one of the founders of sports movement nationally, regionally and continentally. Sports candidates with top regional, continental and international posts over the past years received similar awards. The ceremony was organized on Sunday by the Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) and the event was patronized by HH Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Representative of His Majesty the King for Charity Works and Youth Affairs, Supreme Council for Youth and Sports Chairman, and BOC President at the directives of HM King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to honour sports veterans in the kingdom. It was also attended by other top sports officials, including Supreme Council for Youth and Sports deputy-chairman and Bahrain Athletics Association president HH Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa and Shaikh Isa bin Rashid Al Khalifa. Witnessed by high-ranking sports guests and invitees, this 90-minute function started with MBC Channel’s Arab famous sports programme presenter Mustafa Al Agha welcoming the attendees. BOC general secretary Abdulrahman Askar, who was heading the Advisory Committee of the award, then delivered his speech, in which he congratulated Shaikh Nasser on being named as president of the new Higher Commission for Financial Cooperation and Coordination. Late on, HH Shaikh Nasser presented the awards to the candidates named for the evening. Honorees included West Asian Athletics Federation president Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, FIFA vice-president and AFC president Shaikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, deputy-president of Olympic Council of Asia for West Asia Shaikh Isa bin Rashid Al Khalifa and Arab Golf Federation president Shaikh Abdullah bin Salman Al Khalifa. Source: Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC).