DUBAI — The 40th Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) General Assembly, held Sunday in Dubai, approved unanimously Riyadh's bid to host the OCA’s 7th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in 2025 for the first time in its history.

On this occasion, Minister of Sports and President of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee (SAOC) Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al-Faisal thanked the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy prime minister and minister of defense, for their support for the Saudi sports, which contributed significantly to Saudi Arabia's position among the world's advanced countries in the field of sports.

The minister of sport said, in a press statement, "Thanks to the unlimited support of our leadership and the follow-up and keenness Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, the Saudi sport has taken advanced steps globally, seen in hosting of several international sports events, most notably the Asian Games 2034.

“This is in addition to the generous support, which resulted in the inauguration of an SR2.6 billion strategy to support sports federations, and now winning, for the first time in the history of the Kingdom, the bid to host the Asian Games for Indoor and Martial Arts 2025.”

Prince Fahd Bin Jalawi Bin Abdulaziz Bin Musaed, vice president of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee, secretary-general and member of the executive office of the Olympic Council of Asia, headed the Saudi delegation to the Assembly on behalf of Prince Abdulaziz.

The delegation also included Prince Abdullah Bin Fahd Bin Abdullah, and Adwaa Al-Arifi, two members of the Committee’s Board of Directors, and the Executive Director of Marketing and Institutional Communication Abdulaziz Al-Baqous, during which the report of the Organizing Committee of the 22nd Asian Games (Riyadh 2034) was approved following a presentation by Prince Fahd Bin Jalawi, in which he explained the long-term plan for Asian Games. — SP