Sunday 15 / September / 2024
Muscat: The Oman Hockey Federation held a press conference to reveal the details of the Oman Open Hockey Championship for Hockey Fives 2024, which will be held here from September 8 to 11.
The meeting was attended by Dr. Marwan bin Jumaa Al Jumaa, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Federation, the Technical Director of the Championship Faisal bin Habib Al Balushi, representatives of the teams participating in the championship, and a group of journalists and local media. During the press conference, the tournament draw was conducted, and the start date of the competitions was announced. Eight teams from the military sector, agencies and companies, namely: the Royal Army of Oman, the Royal Guard of Oman, the Royal Navy of Oman, Al Fayhaa Foundation, Security and Safety, Jindal Shadeed Company, Badr Al Samaa Group, and FAB Company will take part in the event.
Dr. Marwan bin Jumaa Al Jumaa, Chairman of the Oman Hockey Association, said during the press conference: “Through the launch of the Oman Hockey Open Championship for Hockey Fives 2024, we seek to expand the spread of the game of hockey fives in the Sultanate of Oman. This championship has attracted a number of bodies and institutions from the military and private sectors. This championship comes as a continuation of the programmes and activities of the Oman Hockey Association that it has dedicated to the game of hockey fives.
:"Last year, the association organised the Oman International Women’s Hockey Fives Championship, in which teams and clubs from India, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates participated. The game of hockey fives has become one of the most preferred games among hockey players at the level of sports clubs and national teams. The national hockey fives team achieved third place in the World Cup for hockey fives, which was hosted by the Sultanate of Oman last January at the Oman Hockey Stadium in Al Amerat. Our national hockey fives team also won second place in the world ranking of the International Hockey Federation. The organising committee of the Oman Hockey Open Championship for hockey fives has set conditions and rules that are consistent with international standards.
The five-a-side game is suitable for the conditions, nature and capabilities of the participating teams. We expect the tournament to witness a high level of rivalry, competition and excitement between the teams. Some teams will be represented by a number of players from the national hockey teams."
Faisal bin Habib Al Balushi, the technical director, spoke about the tournament’s playing system: In the preliminary rounds, after dividing the participating teams into two groups through an open draw, the teams of each group will compete with each other in a two-round league system. In the final rounds, the fourth place from the first group will compete with the fourth place from the second group in the overall ranking to determine the seventh and eighth places, and the third place from the first group will compete with the third place from the second group to determine the fifth and sixth places. In the semi-final round, the first place from the first group will compete with the second place from the second group, and the first place from the second group will compete with the second place from the first group.
The losers of the two semi-final matches will meet to determine the third and fourth places, and the winners of the two semi-final matches will meet to determine the first and second places. The matches will be played on the hockey fields at the Oman Hockey Complex in the Wilayat of Al Amerat.
