The Fazza Championship for Falconry, which was introduced to the competition for the first time this year, concluded today with Team NAS dominating the top ten, unsurprisingly considering the number of teams they had participating.

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Held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and organized by The Hamdan bin Mohammed Heritage Center, the Falconry event was a welcome addition to the annual competition, drawing great interest from local competitors and fans.

In airplane falconry, the falcon follows the wireless plane controlled by the participating falconer, with the prey (Telwah) tied to the tail of the airplane. When the airplane takes off, the falcon gets released to follow the plane and hunt down the tied prey.

The competition calls for outstanding skills on the part of the falcon as well as the falconer as, during the course of the hunt, the airplane winds its way between pillars and columns installed at the site, necessitating a high degree of control and expert maneuvering.

NAS deservedly won six out of the top ten ranks in the tournament, with the NAS H team taking top spot and “NAS R” following in second place. YLS broke the NAS monopoly on the podium, claiming third.

Sharing his experiences and views of the Championship, falconer Hamdan Saeed Jaber said: “[It] is a fantastic tournament that will go a long way in keeping the ancient sport of falconry alive and throbbing in the UAE.

“The tournament has been attracting large crowds and we’re very pleased that the airplane falconry competitions in particular achieved tremendous appeal among the country’s youth.”

Dumaithan bin Swaidan – head of the event’s organising committee, added: “I’d like to extend my thanks to the participating falconers for their fabulous performance and their efforts in enriching this championship and contributing to its success.

“We’ve seen fierce and highly professional competition, which reflects the unique skills of the falconers and the remarkable development in the adoption and utilization of technology to serve one of the oldest sports in history.”

“This tournament forms an innovative open platform for youths of different nationalities. They only need to be aware of the competition’s rules and are free to participate with any kind of wireless airplane, except the helicopter and the wireless jets.”