Sheikh Ahmed Bin Mohammed Bin Hasher speaks at Blue Ocean Forum

Sheikh Ahmed shared his experiences as a world-class elite athlete, while he also entertained questions from participants during a special Q&A session which followed the forum discussions.

Sheikh Ahmed distinguished himself as the first Olympic gold medallist from the UAE when he won the double trap event in shooting during the 2004 Athens Olympics, a remarkable performance considering he only started playing competitively in 1998. Sheikh Ahmed followed up his Olympic win with another gold medal in double trap at the 2005 ISSF World Cup. A man with multi talents and diverse sports interests, Sheikh Ahmed had also been national squash champion from 1985 to 2000.

Sheikh Ahmed said: "It takes a great deal of dedication and commitment to excel in one's chosen field of expertise, particularly in sports. It is certainly a long and demanding process, but I am confident that there are those who are willing to take up the challenge to become the future sports heroes of the UAE. HBMPSLD plays an important role in nurturing and developing the future leaders of the UAE who will be responsible in steering the country's sports programs to greater heights while making full use of the opportunities available. The underlining objective of the program is to elevate the standards of local sportspersons to international levels."

Adel Al Shared, Executive Chairman of HBMPSLD said: "We are greatly pleased to have Sheikh Ahmed as our keynote speaker. As an Olympic champion and a multi-sport veteran, Sheikh Ahmed was a great source of information about the needs and requirements of elite athletes, which the program participants can use in formulating effective sporting programs when they assume their responsibilities as future sports leaders of our country."

Mohammed Faraj, participant of HBMPSLD said:

"It is the responsibility of sports leaders to first and foremost address local issues, particularly the needs of national athletes. The exclusive interactive session with Sheikh Ahmed was an excellent opportunity for us to identify specific areas where we can focus our efforts to further improve our national sports development programs. Furthermore, we are looking forward to meeting more sports leaders in the future to interact and exchange ideas regarding the future opportunities in this domain."

Initiated by H.H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Sports Council, the Hamdan Bin Mohammed Program for Sports Leadership Development is an administrative and managerial leadership program for all sports fields.

The key objectives of HBMPSLD include ensuring a long-term systematised leadership development in sports; initiating changes for a progressive and productive sport society under the 'Change Agents Program'; convening an elite group of sports leaders to help participants in the program benefit from their experiences; sharing insights about individual leadership styles and values; and helping Dubai Government to successfully implement the Dubai Strategic Plan 2015.