Nahyan bin Mubarak launches first edition of UAE Tolerance Esports Games

Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence, inaugurated the first edition of the UAE Tolerance Esports Games and launched the Global Commission for Tolerance in Esports and Gaming on the second day of the fourth edition of the "National Festival for Tolerance and Coexistence" in  Abu Dhabi on 10th November 2020.

The event was organized by the Ministry of Tolerance and Coexistence under the slogan, ''On Zayed's Legacy: Tolerance, Coexistence, Hope, Work'', and will end on 16th November, 2020. The festival comes to a climactic closing on the International Day for Tolerance, with a global call to all people to adopt these integral values through documented actions indicating tolerance and coexistence.

Youth from across the world are welcomed to register for the games, according to the organizers.

In his welcome address, while chairing the meeting of the International Esports Federation, IESF, Global Commission of Tolerance and Coexistence in Esports, Sheikh Nahyan said, "We are here today to launch the Global Commission for Tolerance in Esports and Gaming. Also, we are inaugurating the first edition of the UAE Tolerance Esports Games. The global commission is the result of an MOU, signed between the Ministry of Tolerance and Coexistence in the UAE and the International Esports Federation, to work together to promote Tolerance and Coexistence through Esports."

"As Chair of the Commission, I extend my thanks and a warm welcome to its six founding members, Arkady Dvorkovich, President of FIDE (the World Chess Federation); Nicole Pike, YouGov Global Sector Head of Esports and Gaming; Curtis Kohlass, Chief Development Officer and President of the Carter Center; Kenneth Fok, President of the Asian Esports Federation; Dr. Heidi Alaudeen Alaskary, CEO of the Special Olympics for Saudi Arabia, and Dr. Wirdati Mohammed Radzi, Sports Commissioner for the Ministry of Youth and Sport in Malaysia.

"This powerful team brings an invaluable wealth of talent and experience to the commission. I look forward to working with them all to promote tolerance and coexistence," he said.

"As I said to you the last time we met, we view tolerance and coexistence as essential prerequisites for a peaceful and productive world – a world where diversity is respected, where we embrace our common humanity, where we recognize our interdependence and take action to help others. I hope that by working together, the Ministry of Tolerance and Coexistence and the IESF will create an online culture that recognizes, even when we are connected virtually, that we are still interacting with our fellow human beings."

"We seek to foster a culture that distinguishes between the intensely competitive nature of the game and the cooperative nature of life. A culture that teaches us to respect our opponents, to encourage teammates, to manage our emotions, to be a team player, to accept victory and defeat with equal grace, and to be resilient," Sheikh Nahyan said.

Past IESF President, and current MSSA General Secretary, Colin Webster, was overjoyed at such inauguration. "I am deeply grateful to all to see this project now come to fruition. UAE has a dynamic approach to how esports may be utilized to help resolve serious  issues that confront today's world".