Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki: Elegant athlete who leads Saudi Sports
HRH Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Saud, a Saudi royal prince, and a businessman as well as an athlete who is the grandson of King Faisal bin Abdulaziz.
He now holds the position of Minister of Sports and had a significant role in the achievements of the Saudi national team at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
He inspired and motivated the Saudi national team without making them feel that he was pressuring them to win.
He is currently the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Arab Football Association.
He was appointed head of the Saudi Sports Authority in 2018 after Turki Al-Sheikh was relieved of his appointment as head of the Saudi General Entertainment Authority (GEA).
He was appointed Minister of Sports after the name of the General Authority for Sports was changed to the Ministry of Sports in 2020.
Biography of Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Saud
Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Saud is the second son of Prince Turki Al-Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and the grandson of King Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
Prince Abdulaziz has many sporting achievements, most notably in 2018 when he won first place in the Dubai Cup 24-Hour Challenge race.
He also finished third in the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, before finishing second in the Blancpain World Championship.
His sporting achievements and extensive experience helped him occupy the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Sports Authority in the Kingdom.
Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Saud’s Start
Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Saud was born in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on June 4, 1983, and graduated from King Faisal School in Riyadh in 2000.
He continued his university studies, where he joined the Faculty of Political Science at King Saud University in Riyadh, and obtained a bachelor’s degree in 2003.
He also graduated from the Formula BMW School in Bahrain in 2005.
He continued studying political science at the School of Oriental and African Studies at SOAS University in the British capital, London, from which he graduated in 2006.
Prince Abdulaziz has a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing from UBT University in Jeddah, from which he graduated in 2010.
He loved car racing and participated in many races, including the Formula 1 series for the year 2005-2006.
He participated in the 2006-2007 Formula One Championship and finished third overall.
Prince Abdulaziz married the daughter of Prince Mishaal bin Majid bin Abdulaziz, in December 2015
Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Saud (Accomplishments)
Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki participated in many local and international car races and achieved first place in the FIA GT3 Championship in Portugal in 2011.
He won first place in the Toyo Tires Cup race in Dubai and the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East in 2012. He participated twice in the Gulf race and won first place in 2014.
In the field of trade and business administration, he received an honorary shield from the Arab Petroleum Trading Company. Shell signed a contract with him to be the official ambassador for the road safety program in Saudi Arabia.
As a founding partner and member of the “I challenge you” platform in Lebanon in 2011, he has been on the Board of Directors of the Investment Funds of the National Development Fund since November 2019.
Prince Abdulaziz has also been a board member of Qiddiya Investment Company since December 14, 2019.
He was appointed president of the Saudi Sports Authority in 2018. In addition, he also assumed the position of an executive member of the Marketing Committee of the International Olympic Committee.
He became Vice President of the Saudi Olympic Committee and Head of the Executive Office, in addition to the position of President of the International Camel Federation.
Abdulaziz bin Turki was Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Industrial Resins Company, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Stabraq Company,
He held the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Racing Company, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Daleel Al-Emaar Company.
The prince became Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Sports Group, in addition to the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors of Megas.
Prince Abdulaziz worked to develop the Middle East Radical Championship to become the premier event in the region.
He also worked on restructuring the Saudi Industrial Resins Company to increase revenues and total sales.
Prince Abdulaziz was appointed Minister of Sports for the first time on February 25, 2020.
He was also recommended as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Arab Football Association in September 2019, to succeed Turki Al-Sheikh.
He participated in several car races and achieved several positions, winning the Porsche GT3 Challenge Cup in 2012.
Prince Abdulaziz won first place in the Toyo Tires Cup race in Dubai. He participated twice in the Gulf race and won first place in 2014, and second place in 2015.
He also received an honorary shield from the Arab Petroleum Products Company “APSCO”.
Prince Abdulaziz graduated from King Faisal School in Riyadh in 2000 and studied political science at King Saud University from 2001 to 2003.
He obtained a bachelor’s degree in political science from King Saud University in 2003.
The prince studied marketing at the College of Business Administration (CBA), University of Business and Technology, UBT, Jeddah in 2006 and graduated in 2010.
Former Positions.
– Former Vice Chairman of the General Authority for Sports Board of Directors.
– Co-founder of “Ithadak Platform” in Lebanon, in 2011.
Most Notable Achievements in Points:-
– Shell signed a contract with him to be its official ambassador for the “Road Safety” program in the Kingdom.
– Formula Racing Series in 2005 and 2006: 1 race, 1st place.
Formula Series (2006-2007): Eight out of nine races, four wins, third in the championship.
– Speed 7 Journey Bahrain (2006 – 2007): 2nd place in the overall autocross championship.
What did the Saudi Sports Minister say after his country’s victory over Argentina?
After the Saudi national team’s historic victory over Argentina at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Saudi Sports Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal expressed his deep happiness, describing the victory as an “incredible day.”
Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal said in an interview with “CNN” conducted by Becky Anderson on November 23, “I am waiting for someone to wake me up. It was an incredible result.”
“The team played very well, and we have been preparing for three years for this day,” he said. The coach has done an amazing job. The players are in harmony and there is a positive feeling because of this result.”
He said that the celebration was not limited to the Saudis only. It was also in the Arab and Islamic world, as the team performed a performance that was a matter of pride for all.
The minister added that a lot of criticism circulated during the preparation period for the World Cup, but after the performance of the last team, no one can complain.
He mentioned in the commentary the performance difference between the Saudi players, most of whom play in the local league, and the Argentine national team, most of whose players are professionals in Europe.
He said, “We have invested a lot in sports over the past few years, and this has shown results. We have rebuilt sports in the Kingdom to make it as professional as anywhere in the world.”
The Saudi Minister of Sports referred to the expansion of various sports that Saudis had not previously played. He also referred to the continuation of efforts to invest appropriately and follow international standards to develop sports in the Kingdom.
World-class performance
He continued, “We surprised everyone. What a surprise… It was unbelievable. I am happy that all the efforts we have made, the sacrifices made by the players over the past few years, and all the criticism about Saudi football paid off and the team performed a world-class performance.”
As for what the Saudi team might achieve, he said, “We appeared ready, but we have no idea what the result will be, and now our goal is to qualify for the next round.
Messi is the face of Saudi tourism
When he was asked if Saudi Arabia paid a large sum to Messi to be the face of tourism in the Kingdom, he replied, “I am not the Minister of Tourism, so I do not know what this deal is.
He added that the presence of Messi as the face of tourism is a positive thing. I think he visited Saudi Arabia several times, and I met him in the Kingdom as well. Saudi Arabia welcomes the world.
World Cup 2030
When asked about Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the World Cup in 2030 and about the possible offer that the Kingdom will make, he said, “We do not have a bid now for the tournament in 2030.”
He added, “What we are focusing on is submitting a bid to host the Asian Women’s Championship in 2026, and the Asian Men’s Championship in 2027.”
“We also won the bid to host the Asian Games in 2034,” said the Minister of Sports, noting, “Our full focus is on how to prepare the stadiums and how to prepare the infrastructure to host these two events.”
Ronaldo will move to Saudi Arabia
On the authenticity of the circulated news that Cristiano Ronaldo received a huge offer from a Saudi club that amounted to $ 350 million last year and the possibility of his transfer to the Kingdom in the upcoming season, he replied, “I do not know if this is a direct answer. I read the same thing that you read in the news.”
He continued, “As you know, we see a lot of things about Saudi Arabia mentioned in the news, especially when there is big money related to the news, but I do not know anything about his plans.”
In response to a question about Ronaldo playing in Saudi Arabia, the Minister of Sports replied, “Why not? Each team has a strong league.” We have seven foreign players and one player on the bench, and we hope to increase that. Our teams play at the highest level in Asia, and football is strong in Saudi Arabia.” So why not?”
