June 1st marks Women’s Golf Day across the globe, with that in mind the Emirates Golf Federation (EGF) is using that platform to address the strides of development the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has seen over the past two years. Over the past two years, the EGF’s National Ladies Program has attracted over 100 female players, particularly young women, from different emirates of the country, as part of the game’s Women in Golf efforts.
“The National Ladies & Junior Development Program, in collaboration with the country’s golf club academies and the Ministry of Education, has been behind the success over the past two years in attracting 100 players from different emirates, including 30 players between the ages of 7 and 13,” said April Varney, coach of the UAE National Ladies Team.
“The goal of the Federation is to build a strong foundation of different generations. We want to have a good mixture of talent in order to compete on all levels including the Arab and Gulf Championships as well as the Asia-Pacific Championships.”
During the past spring break 30 players were selected to participate in local championships, this fun but competitive championships gave coach Varney and the EGF the opportunity to see how much the program has developed over the past two years. The EGF saw some promising talents, most notably the 11-year-old twin sisters Salama and Latifa Al Jassmy, as well as Fatima Kalbat (9 years), Rawda Mohammed al-Hafiti and Sarah Ali, each aged 12 and Yasmin Mansour al-Amadi, 13, and Faye Mohammed Al Blooshi, 14.
“We look forward to continuing our work on the golf federation’s promising strategy. Under the guidance of His Excellency Sheikh Fahem bin Sultan al-Qasimi, and in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and golf clubs in the UAE, the UAE National Golf Program has worked to intensify training and has strong ambitions for success,” said Mr. Khalid Mubarak Al Shamsi, Secretary General of the EGF and the National Teams’ Manager.
Since 2019, Coach Varney has been coaching the women’s and girls’ National Teams. She and the EGF have led UAE Women’s Golf to a silver in the Arab Championship, followed by a Gold in the GCC Golf Championship, with a hopeful ambition of a top finish in the Asia-Pacific in the near future.
