Dubai wants it all and a Summer Olympics certainly seems to part of the wish list. And if the emirate does launch a bid, Dubai Sports City is raring to play a major role, writes Andy van Smeerdijk
There must be something in the sand. Like many other expanses of desert in Dubai, the tract past Dubai Autodrome along Emirates Road has sprouted a development, but this one isn't quite so ho-hum as the usual sprawl of villas.
Dubai Sports City is rapidly coming together here and its presence has a vice-like grip on sports lovers throughout the city, whether it's a fleeting glimpse of its stadiums while driving past or a newsbyte about Andrew Flintoff, Ronaldo or Ernie Els inspecting the facilities.
For many of us, sport is everything and the thought of having one of the world's largest sports developments on our doorstep sends the saliva glands full-tilt.
Part of the Dubailand development, Dubai Sports City (DSC) is a 50 million sq ft project that, when completed in 2010, will include a 60,000-seat outdoor arena, 25,000-seat cricket stadium, 10,000-seat indoor arena, 5000-seat hockey field, gymnasium, Olympic swimming pool and 18-hole professional golf course designed by Ernie Els among other facilities.
A major coup is the International Cricket Council moving base to the complex in the coming months. In addition to this, DSC also has a clutch of high-calibre sporting academies.
There's the Butch Harmon School of Golf (Harmon was a coach of Tiger Woods), the ICC Cricket Academy, David Lloyd Tennis Academy, Manchester United Soccer Schools programmes and the WorldHockey Academy.
But the most talked about aspect of the $4 billion project is its potential to form the cornerstone of an Olympic bid. This first made headlines in 2004, when reports emerged of Dubai expressing an interest a bid for the 2016 Olympics. The bid didn't eventuate and the issue fizzled.
Two years ago Mohammad Al Gergawi, UAE Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs, affirmed an interest in hosting the games, AFP reported. "The UAE is ready, via the Dubai Sports City, to hold the Olympics," announced Al Gergawi, also the chief executive of Dubai Holding.
Backing the proposal was DSC chief executive U Balasubramaniam. "Should the Government of Dubai also intend to make a bid, as I believe they will, they will have the backing of Dubai Sports City," he said.
"We are confident that Dubai Sports City has the capability of staging an event like the Olympic Games in the future.''
Indeed, when I first visited the Sports City site earlier this year for the purpose of this article, one of the first quips I got was "So you're going to ask about the Olympics, I suppose? Every journalist asks that one."
Well, yes.
Malcolm Thorpe, marketing director of sports business at DSC, says the development would welcome such an opportunity. "If Dubai bids for the Olympics, we would fully support that bid in any way we can, including acting as a host venue for as many of the events as possible," he told 4Men.
"We firmly believe that Dubai will be one of the world's great sporting destinations in the near future, and we are already working to contribute to this vision."
So there you have it. The only question is when. Earlier this year, another statement got the rumour mill grinding again.
While on a trip to Beijing, Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, told Arabian Business that the emirate is going to investigate planning a bid for the Olympic Games.
Of course, planning a bid and winning it are two different matters but knowing Dubai's track record, no expense will be spared. Sports City should be able to handle the lion's share and in all likelihood the facilities opening in 2010 are probably only the beginning.
The complex's main arena could hold track and field events while the indoor arena could host basketball, indoor hockey, volleyball, handball, netball or ice hockey.
(But not all at once. If a bid was successful, more facilities would be required.) Then there's the cricket stadium, hockey field, gymnasium and swimming complex and golf course.
But for now, the Olympics are still just a sketch on the drawing board. Thorpe says the development's focus is matching events with its current facilities.
"Dubai Sports City has a commercial strategy in place that looks to support at least one major event in six of the 'core sports' that match our facilities - football, rugby, cricket, hockey, golf and tennis - to run every year in Dubai.
"Through this strategy we have a particular focus on developing 'flagship events', supported by both a series of local events and by the daily activities at each of our sports academies, creating a year-round calendar of events."
The development's quest for a slice of the $50 billion global sports business market has begun. The Dunes, a par 72 professional golf course, has already opened and seems like a likely venue for tournaments once fully developed.
Recently Dubai won the bid to host the 2010 World Short Course Swimming Championships. With Sports City the emirate's only 50-metre pool, it's the obvious candidate. Another possible event is the 2010 Asia Cup cricket tournament.
The new Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President Dr Nasim Ashraf announced that the 2010 contest will be held in a non-test playing country. But the complex's cricket stadium will already be in use by then.
"We are now working on a series of event opportunities, both for the cricket stadium opening and as part of an on-going event programme," says Thorpe.
"Further details will be revealed later in the year, but you can anticipate a major international match early in 2009 to provide a proper inauguration."
Of course, Dubai hasn't had all the spoils of international sports events, with Abu Dhabi hosting the country's first Formula 1 Grand Prix next year.
Once it has several major events under its belt, the complex will be a lynchpin in Dubai's quest for an Olympics. But there are several factors that will make a bid challenging.
The greatest challenge is the weather. The summer Olympics are typically held in August, when the temperatures in the UAE are extreme. At the least, an autumn event would have to be held.
Doha recently failed to make the short list for the 2016 Olympics. Qatar's capital proposed an Olympics staged in October but was rejected.
A dismayed Hassan Ali Bin Ali, the leader of Doha's bid, told reporters, "It is a great pity that they (the IOC) have closed the door on a bid from the Middle East. If the games are only going to be held in Europe, Asia and America then I do not know why the IOC want us in the Olympic movement."
IOC spokesperson Giselle Davies told The Guardian that Doha's departure from the traditional mid-summer time-frame was the factor that harmed its bid, not the high temperature.
"The IOC... decided not to grant this exception as it conflicts with the international sporting calendar and would be bad for athletes and sports fans," he told the newspaper. "Does this mean Doha or another country from the Middle East could never host the games? No."
So tinkering with the weather may be Dubai's best bet. Another factor is the UAE's own perfomance in sports both in men's and women's competitions, which isn't spectacular.
Aside from this, the fact that the US hasn't staged an Olympics in recent years could sway favour away from other candidates, given its clout in the IOC. But if Chicago wins the 2016 Games, there could be an opening in 2020.
There are some people who back Dubai. Indeed, someone's already nabbed the following domain names: http://dubai-olympics2020.com and http://dubai-olympics2024.com.
Even if Dubai doesn't clinch the Olympics, it's geographically positioned to be a major sports hub. DSC claims there are two billion potential spectators within a four-hour flight away. Dubai's also got the broadcast network in place to reach a wide global audience.
With Dubai already hosting prestigious events such as the Dubai Tennis Open, the Dubai Rugby Sevens and the Dubai Tennis Championships, eventually some may be swayed to move to the new facility.
"We enjoy a strong relationship with the organisers of all of Dubai's leading sporting events, including the Sevens and the Tennis Open, and would welcome them to host their events at Dubai Sports City. Obviously, any announcement of future plans will come from the event organisers themselves," says Thorpe.
In the short-term, cricket events will feature, given the ICC's base and Dubai's position being close to many of the Test playing nations, as well as having a large domestic spectator base for cricket. The ICC's move to the complex is hoped to attract other sports organisations.
"We are already preparing to welcome the International Cricket Council to its new international headquarters at Dubai Sports City, as well as the ICC Global Cricket Academy.
"Dubai Sports City will also be home tothe WorldHockey Academy, in partnership with the International Hockey Federation. In terms of other groups, we are in dialogue with a wide range of local, regional and international bodies, and we would like to think that a number of them will elect to situate offices or even headquarters at Dubai Sports City."
And as most of us are fully aware, the development is far more than just stadiums: apartments, houses, villas, schools and a massive shopping mall will feature. And asides from sports games, its facilities will be ideal for concerts and other events.
Regardless of the event, the issue of traffic and transport is at the forefront of planning, says Thorpe.
"Working with authorities like the RTA, Dubai Municipality and the police, as well as with neighbouring projects within the Dubailand destination, we are developing a full strategy to manage the influx of visitors on match days and for major events, as well as ensuring smooth access for the estimated 70,000 people who will live and work in Dubai Sports City."
As for the future, Thorpe says the complex will move beyond its core sports to include other facilities.
"There will also be facilities available for a wide range of other sports, including academies for swimming and athletics as well as a high performance gymnasium and world class sports science and rehabilitation facilities.
"Overall, Dubai Sports City will offer a very comprehensive stage for almost any sporting event, with the exception of equestrian and motor sports, which are already catered for elsewhere in Dubai."
