UAE Team Emirates’ Yousif Mirza has been awarded the Outstanding UAE Athlete of 2017 prize, on behalf of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates.
Mirza overcame stiff competition from 541 other nominated athletes, across 28 sports, to scoop the prestigious prize – adding to an already extraordinary year for the Emirati cyclist.
The award was presented by His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE, at a ceremony on Monday which recognised the UAE’s sporting achievements over the past year.
Commenting on the award, Mirza said: “I’m very honoured to pick up this award. Unfortunately I could not attend the ceremony because I’m training in Europe and preparing for my next World Tour race in California, but it adds extra value to my recent achievements in Asia and the UAE.
“It’s great to know that UAE Team Emirates is increasing the awareness of cycling here in the Emirates and I hope this award will inspire even more young people to cycle.”
Yousif Mirza captured his eighth UAE National Road Race title last month.
It has been a momentous year for Mirza, having joined UAE Team Emirates as the first-ever professional Emirati cyclist. He secured his eighth UAE National Road Race title last month, adding to an historic hat-trick of medals at the Asian Track Cycling Championships in Malaysia, which included the Asian Road Cycling Championship and the Omnium track cycling silver medal.
UAE Team Emirates’ participation on the UCI WorldTour gives the local community the opportunity to come together and support world-class athletes as they aim to become one of the top cycling teams on the tour. To find out more about UAE Team Emirates, visit UAETeamEmirates.com.