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Il’Ab We’Yana kick-off festivals draw to a close in Al Khor, seeing 300 school children committing to playing more football. Il’Ab We’Yana, which is part of the broader KOORA TIME initiative announced by the Qatar Football Association (QFA) and Qatar Shell, is an extra-curricular school programme based on the FutbolNet methodology created by FC Barcelona Foundation that uses football as a means to develop healthy habits and positive behavioural change. |
Children who took part in the festival were thrilled and excited to be on the pitch, enjoying every minute of the four hours spent with FC Barcelona Foundation. Following the training, the children were also motivated to adopt a healthier lifestyle and dedicate more time to playing football. The festivals which launched last week were attended by over 1,000 children in total, aged 7 to 12 years from 33 schools across Qatar.
Two festivals which took place in Doha targeted 750 school children with a last stop in Al Khor which was attended by 300 kids.Il’Ab We’Yana will run for 40 weeks. Sessions will be two hours in length and will be held twice a week after school at 14 different venues across the country ensuring sessions are easily accessible within each community.
Saoud al-Mohannadi, General Secretary, QFA commented, “The Il’Ab We Yana Festival in Al Khor marks the third consecutive success for Qatar Football Association and Qatar Shell. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the schools which collaborated with us to help make the launch of Il’Ab We’Yana a great success.”
Wael Sawan, Managing Director and Chairman of Qatar Shell Companies commented, “Upon the launch of KOORA TIME we made a commitment to the children to provide easy access to more football and we are proud to wrap up the final festival which has reached over 1,000 school kids. As part of this initiative we pledged to provide 4 hours a week of football, by the end year each child would have taken part in an additional 160 hours of physical activity over a 40 week period.”
In addition, Il’Ab We’Yana will provide participants with six teaching modules, focusing on water and hydration; fruits, vegetables, and grains; harmful effects of fast food and snacks; fat and sugar; breakfast and sleep; and tobacco, as well as footballing tips for a healthy lifestyle.
“We were amazed with the positive response that we received to the kick off festival, the atmosphere was electric and it is truly inspiring to see young children engaging in activities with such passion. These children are at the heart of what we do and we believe that Il’Ab We’Yana will transform their lives. It was impressive to see the level of energy that these children displayed during the festival and Il’Ab We’Yana will definitely help them adopt a healthier lifestyle while developing their football skills,” said Ramon Cierco, FC Barcelona Foundation Vice President.