Friday, January 13, 2022, was a monumental day for Amsterdam Clinics and its flagship program, FUNDIS, at Al-Ahly Club in Zamalek. The Amsterdam Clinics team of Dutch colleagues successfully introduced the FUNDIS child-athlete development programme to Cairo and Egypt, in the presence of His Excellency Han-Maurits Schaapveld, Ambassador of the Netherlands to Cairo, to recognize the special occasion. Mr. Mahmoud El Khatib, Chairman of Al-Ahly Club, was the first to present the collaboration between Amsterdam Clinics and the prestigious club, as well as how the program would be implemented in the coming months to inspire a future generation of healthy child-athletes. FUNDIS’ mission is to encourage young people to live healthy and productive lives and discover hidden sports talents throughout Egypt. Athletes who are ambitious and successful may one day aspire to compete at international levels where gold medals are the ultimate achievement.
The Amsterdam Clinics team believes that every child, regardless of cultural or ethnic background, age, or gender, has the right to participate in sports. FUNDIS is a program that aims to implement developmental strategies in all areas of pediatric livelihood to promote healthy aging and the development of long-term life habits that will significantly improve the quality of life for all Egyptian participants.
However, Amsterdam Clinics and FUNDIS’s goal is not only to improve health outcomes and achieve excellence in sports performance in Egypt but also to expand in Africa and the wider Middle East region in the near future to encourage children of all ages to participate in all levels of sports. The foundation of the program is the development of basic motor skills for children aged 6 to 8, followed by the sport compass, a system designed to assist in identifying the sporting interests of participating children. Third, children aged 10 to 12 may be guided through a talent-identification component that will assist coaches, trainers, and athletes in selecting and beginning specialization in a specific sports area. Finally, the Champions program helps athletes achieve their peak levels of performance and sporting competence to win international sports championships and titles.
Egyptian television and media personalities were invited to attend the presentation and spread the word about this unique collaboration between Al-Ahly, dubbed “The Club of the Century,” and Amsterdam Clinics’ FUNDIS program, which is poised to take the lead on the Egyptian sports scene. The event also marked the start of a difficult mission that will hopefully enrich Egypt’s sports domain with new and established talents.