Oman Sail national team manager, Rashid Al Kindi, is celebrating two prestigious appointments this week: his election as vice president of the Asian Sailing Federation and recent appointment as the first chairman of the newly established Oman Sailing Committee of the Sultanate’s Ministry of Sport.Al Kindi who has a long and distinguished career in sports management hopes his position on both sporting bodies will help contribute to a long held ambition for Oman to win an Olympic medal.
Al Kindi was voted vice president of the Asian Sailing Federation after elections in participating countries and member states. He is the first Omani to be elected to this influential position which reflects the confidence and exceptional support of the Arab Gulf states and Asian countries for the growth of sailing infrastructure in Oman, its active community programmes, strong regional and presence at international championships worldwide.
The Oman Sailing Committee was established by ministerial decision of HE Saad bin Mohammed Almradof Al Sadi of the Ministry of Sports Affairs. It is the first official body of its kind.
“Oman has made great efforts in the development of young Omanis through sailing. By investing in appropriate facilities and training opportunities we hope to achieve our ultimate goal of winning an Olympic medal.” said Al Kindi Rashid who begins his administrative work with the Asian Sailing Federation early next year.
"Our mandate is to work for the development of sailing and its presence in the Asian continent. A key proposal to the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) and International Olympic Committee (IOC) , will be for the Asian Sailing Federation to hold Olympic qualifying competitions in Asia.”
Al Kindi’s two new appointments are the culmination of many years of commitment to sport. He started his career in athletics, working as a coach before taking up managerial positions in management teams at the Ministry of Sports Affairs. He joined Oman Sail in March 2011.
“I was first introduced to Oman Sail at the second Asian Beach Games in Muscat and I was so impressed by what they were doing that it fuelled my desire to join them and especially to share their goal of winning an Olympic medal for Oman.
“This is not a new ambition for me. It was always a dream of mine since I first started working in sport. It is what motivated me to develop a career in the management of sports teams, especially earlier on with regards to athletics.
“In fact it would be impossible for anyone aspiring to win an Olympic medal for his country to ignore the Oman Sail project and what they have set out to achieve. It is a pioneering project with great potential and offers an appropriate platform to achieve this ambition.
“I’ve seen the desire, support and potential for developing the sport of sailing among the community and even from parents. There is great technical potential among young Omani men and women and already this year we have achieved our first Asian medal.”
“I am impressed by how much Omani men and women have already achieved in international sport and in particular by Oman’s most achieving athlete Mohammed bin Amer al-Maliki’s Asian 400m track records.”
Even so Al Kindi has refused two white card entries to the Olympic Games. Instead he believes the country should rather work hard to earn participation at the Olympics and encourage more efforts to reach the level of international qualification required.
“Oman Sail is doing just that. It has an ambitious plan for creating a pathway to the Olympic Games. It encourages short and long term training programmes for young Omanis, has the skills to identify young talent and professional coaches to harness potential and prepare them for top level contests.”
“Our ambitions are big and we believe we can overcome the challenges for broadening the base of the sport by proceeding with the establishment of sailing schools in the various regions of the Sultanate. We already have three sailing schools running and by 2015 aim to open another four to have a total of seven schools in Muscat, Al Batinah, Musandam, Dhofar and Al Sharqeya.
“We hope from Allah Almighty to bless and help us empower young Omani in this sport and to equip them to represent our country in the best possible way for gaining podium results and medals at the highest level.”
The first meeting of the Oman Sailing Committee discussed administrative aspects as well as the coordination and regulation of sailing between existing associations in Oman and international bodies and the hosting of major upcoming sailing events in 2013 including the 5th GCC sailing championships and the Laser World Championships.
Other key members of the Oman Sailing Committee are Oman Sail CEO, David Graham as vice chairman, Salma Al Hashmi, Marina Psychogio, Neil Coxon, Saif bin Said Al-Shibli from the Ministry of Sports and Issa al Ismaili as executive secretary of the committee.
