Geeta Mannan Sharma, Learning Support Assistant at GEMS Modern Academy, shares her experience of the inaugural GEMS Determination Cup.

The GEMS Determination Cup, launched earlier this year under the GEMS Sports Series, is a platform for children who face challenges in their day-to-day lives to hone their sporting skills. Instilling the importance of academics and sports from a young age helps children develop self-belief, a sense of fairness, and patience, allowing them to become an integral part of society.

The Cup was held at GEMS Wellington Academy — Silicon Oasis (WSO), with a total of 200 students from 20 schools across UAE taking part. The event featured an array of activities for pairs of teams to play each other non-competitively. With every song change, teams had to move on to the next game, with the Tug-O-War proving the best opportunity to foster team work.

The day was thoroughly enjoyed by all children involved, and the adults not only cheered on their teams, but also helped out where needed. Spectators were also entertained by the foot-tapping musical performance by WSO students and teachers, who played the African djembe. At the end of the meet, participants and supporters attended the awards ceremony where the students were presented with medals and certificates. The happiness seen in the children’s faces expressed a thousand unspoken words — an interpreter is not needed to understand what love and emotions mean.

The event has inspired the desire to empower students to realise that a disability is no obstacle to success.