ICLDC's Sixth Annual Football Tournament Promotes A Healthy Lifestyle

Corporate Abu Dhabi teams-up for Play For Life 2013

Play for Life - Football 2013
ICLDC's Annual Football Tournament
Nightly from 7pm, October 6-10
Zayed Sports City, Abu Dhabi, UAE
www.diabetesuae.ae
www.facebook.com/DiabetesUAE

Abu Dhabi, UAE October 4 2013: More than 200 players from leading organisations in UAE will come together for the sixth Play for Life - Football 2013 tournament kicking off this Sunday at Zayed Sports City's Grand Stadium (October 6-10, nightly).

Event organiser, Imperial College London Diabetes Centre (ICLDC), confirmed that the annual tournament will see 12 teams across three groups compete in seven-a-side matches. The Play for Life final is slated for October 10.

Under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Play for Life is part of ICLDC's public health awareness campaign, ‘Diabetes-Knowledge-Action' promoting a balanced diet and regular exercise as the smart, simple steps to achieving a healthy lifestyle.

Carol Sansour Dabdoub, Marketing and Communications Manager, and Campaign Director at ICLDC said:  “The campaign is involved in many activities and through our annual football tournament the goal is to help encourage corporate executives to consider a positive, long lasting embrace of exercise.”

This year, Abu Dhabi's Cleveland Clinic is on-board as the tournament's gold sponsor and is fielding a team for the first time.

Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority (ADFCA), the food and agriculture organisation is another tournament first timer and is this year's silver sponsor.

“ICLDC's ‘Diabetes-Knowledge-Action' has achieved tremendous success in creating awareness of healthy lifestyle in UAE. As a socially conscious organisation, we are thrilled to be aligned with Football 2013 and do our bit to help encourage wellbeing in the workplace,” said Saaed Jassem Mohammad, ADFCA's Acting Director, Communication and Community Service.

Dabdoub added that the tournament has brought notable change among the players and participants since its launch in 2008, with past participants reporting significant success in maintaining a more active lifestyle after taking part.

According to the latest figures, more than 371 million people worldwide are living with diabetes. The International Diabetes Federation suggests that the condition affects 18.9 per cent of the UAE population, placing the Emirates eleventh worldwide.

Play for Life - Football 2013

 Nightly from 7pm, October 6-10 2013 at Zayed Sports City.
 12 teams divided into four groups to compete in seven-a-side matches, each lasting 30 minutes.
 Round-robin format.
 The final will be played on October 10, with the awarding of:
 Winner's Cup
 Player of the Tournament
 Top Goal Scorer
 Best Goalkeeper

EXTRA NEWS BITE –                                                                         300 To Walk Around Zayed Sports City On Sunday Evening
Diabetes-Knowledge-Action is going all out to get the UAE walking more as more than 300 people are expected to join a walk around the stadium on first day of Play for Life–Football 2013 at the capital's Zayed Sports City, October 6 at 6pm. Football 2013 is organised by Imperial College London Diabetes Centre, and supported by Cleveland Clinic as the event's gold sponsor, with sliver support from Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority.

EXTRA NEWS BITE –                                                                         17,000 Expected To Join Walk 2013 In November
Play for Life 2013 takes place a month ahead of the ICLDC's flagship event, Walk 2013 powered by Active Life from Daman. Walk 2013 will take place at Yas Marina Circuit on November 15, with more than 17,000 participants expected to pace up to five kilometres around the F1 track, clocking up more than 60,000,000 steps!