Members of the U-15 team of International School of Choueifat — Abu Dhabi celebrate with the trophy.

Gulf Today, Sports Reporter

Following three days of exciting sports playoffs and finals featuring action-packed matches and competitions for 13 team and individual sports, Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK) honoured the champions of the Abu Dhabi Sports Championship for schools and universities 2024. The biggest edition to date, the championship attracted a record participation of 26,000 school and university student athletes in its third year.

The championship wrapped up recently, with the final matches for the Under 15 football girls and boys at the Abu Dhabi Cricket and Sports Hub. In the girls' category, Gems United Indian School won against Al Yahar Private School with a 3-2 score, while International School of Choueifat – Abu Dhabi won the boys’ U15 title with a 3-0 triumph over Summit International Schools.

The winners were awarded Sara Musallam, Minister of State for Early Education, Chairman of the Federal Agency of Early Education (FAEE), and ADEK Chairman, and Mubarak Hamad Al Mheiri, ADEK Undersecretary.

The closing ceremony kicked off with a student parade where the winners of all 13 sports disciplines were led by the Abu Dhabi Police Music Band on the field. The iconic Hussain Al Jassami joined the champions with a special performance. The weekend had a great turnout of families, friends and sports enthusiasts who gathered to support all student athletes and enjoyed a variety of action-filled activities, interactive games and giveaways in the fan zone.

International and local scouts including La Liga and IMG Academy scouts were also present to identify exceptionally talented students to join summer camps at leading international sports academies and ADEK’s talent identification and development programs.

The Abu Dhabi Sports Championship 2024 attracted participation from 403 public, private and Charter Schools in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, and Al Dhafra, along with 18 universities.