Youth hostels in Qatar, in collaboration with Mindsports International, will soon introduce mindsports games for the youngsters by setting up a number of after school clubs.
“We are about to sign an agreement with the local youth hostels to encourage and start after school clubs. There are already several local schools working with us and follow the mindsports games in earnest. A large number of students in Qatar are taking part in most mindsports games,” Dave Brannan, founder and chief executive of Mindsports International, told Gulf Times.
Taking place in the Middle East for the first time, the fourth World Mindsports Championships is currently underway at the Doha Exhibition & Convention Centre. More than 1,000 players from 23 countries, including a number of mindsports enthusiasts from Qatar, are competing across the six mindsports, for the crown title of Mindsports World Champion.
Dave Brannan says clubs support the teaching of teamwork.
According to Brannan, mindsports are the fastest growing and most highly watched sports internationally. Mindsports include Chess, Scrabble, Bridge, Backgammon, E-sports and Go.
“We work with the Qatar Tourism Authority and Qatar Foundation. At this time, there is nothing official about adding mindsports to the school curriculum but we expect more schools to add this over the coming months. We are also hopeful that the Ministry of Education and Higher Education might include it as part of the curriculum within a year,” he noted.
“Mindsports education clubs support the teaching of teamwork. Moreover, Mindsports helps sharpen and strengthen English, math and spelling; improves time management, confidence and attention span and encourages students to make new friends,” Brannan maintained.
The official highlighted that a large number of countries have implemented mindsports games in schools. “Several countries have introduced chess and scrabble in their schools. The UK and the USA use chess in many schools; India, Korea and Pakistan use scrabble in the schools. The same is the case with a large number of schools in several countries all across the world,” he continued.
Brannan felt that mindsports will become a part of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) within five years. There are more than 1bn mindsports players around the world, including 600mn chess players and 400mn Go players.
Taking place in the Middle East for the first time, the fourth World Mindsports Championships is currently underway at the Doha Exhibition & Convention Centre. More than 1,000 players from 23 countries, including a number of mindsports enthusiasts from Qatar, are competing across the six mindsports, for the crown title of Mindsports World Champion.
Dave Brannan says clubs support the teaching of teamwork.
According to Brannan, mindsports are the fastest growing and most highly watched sports internationally. Mindsports include Chess, Scrabble, Bridge, Backgammon, E-sports and Go.
“We work with the Qatar Tourism Authority and Qatar Foundation. At this time, there is nothing official about adding mindsports to the school curriculum but we expect more schools to add this over the coming months. We are also hopeful that the Ministry of Education and Higher Education might include it as part of the curriculum within a year,” he noted.
“Mindsports education clubs support the teaching of teamwork. Moreover, Mindsports helps sharpen and strengthen English, math and spelling; improves time management, confidence and attention span and encourages students to make new friends,” Brannan maintained.
The official highlighted that a large number of countries have implemented mindsports games in schools. “Several countries have introduced chess and scrabble in their schools. The UK and the USA use chess in many schools; India, Korea and Pakistan use scrabble in the schools. The same is the case with a large number of schools in several countries all across the world,” he continued.
Brannan felt that mindsports will become a part of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) within five years. There are more than 1bn mindsports players around the world, including 600mn chess players and 400mn Go players.
