Yoga classes to be included in Saudi schools soon

Nouf Marwaai, head of the Saudi Yoga Committee, said in a recent interview with Saudi media that yoga is expanding remarkably in the Kingdom due to its importance in physical health, especially for women.

She indicated that there are many plans to expand its area and achieve the goals of establishing this committee.

According to Marwaai, there is cooperation with the Ministry of Education to spread this sport through schools, and there are several areas that will be worked on in order to spread this sport.

Marwaai revealed that the formation of the Saudi Yoga Committee was of great importance due to the popularity of yoga in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the presence of a large base of practitioners.

She indicated that there are thousands of Saudi female trainers who own halls, centers and initiatives for yoga, and the committee’s presence became important for organizing this sport and its service providers.

This is important especially due to their large number first and organizing the game second. It will also play an important role in attracting the skills of elite players for local and international participation, enhancing competitiveness to raise enthusiasm and increasing participation of all ages in the game.

Regarding the popularity of yoga in Saudi society, she indicated that not the entire community is familiar with the sport.

“Despite its widespread popularity, there is still a lack of awareness regarding the importance and benefits of this sport, and we are working to spread awareness of it in several ways.”

Yoga has around 300 million practitioners around the world, and the market size for it is about $41 billion in 2020, and it is expected to reach $70 billion in 2022. It has several types: Hatha yoga, Vinyasa yoga, Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga, and Lyengar yoga.

These types have been approved by the Saudi Yoga Committee, and they are working on a special strategy to introduce this type and its great importance to the psychological and physical health of all members of society.

She indicated that yoga is a sport suitable for all and has several levels suitable even for the elderly and people with special needs, and its trainers and practitioners are spread in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The committee has also organized these practices to improve the quality of services provided in this field, and we will soon launch many programs that will support halls, centers, trainers and amateurs, to perform their work in the best way and spread yoga on a large scale in society.

As for the second type, it is professional yoga. This type includes the practice of yoga at a high level of professionalism and a very advanced level. This includes elite players. It is the type for tournaments and competitions.

“This is what we aspire to establish a base for young practitioners and the youth group and prepare them to participate in local and international tournaments, and we have finalized the regulations. We are soon working on training qualified Saudi referees and trainers to create a generation of yoga professionals in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”

As for rehabilitative or therapeutic yoga, it includes the rehabilitation of yoga trainers to train people with injuries, special needs, or those who suffer from certain health problems to benefit from the sport of yoga with caution and practice what is appropriate for the situation.

Marwaai explained that there are many yoga federations, competitions and tournaments around the world, adding that they are working on the committee’s strategy to establish players, teams and clubs in the Kingdom.

“We have finished their regulations, and we will announce them and start the program soon so that we can launch the first yoga competition, and we hope that a large number will join, including juniors and young people, these programs and clubs, and to increase the participation rate in these competitions and tournaments.”

Marwaai believes that yoga will not remain confined to the main cities, as yoga instructors and trainers have spread throughout the Kingdom so that many institutions organize trips for tourism and recreation by practicing yoga, and perhaps the Al-Ula Recreation Festival is a good example of this, in which female trainers and trainers from all over the Kingdom and even from abroad also participate. Due to the high demand for this recreational practice that brings relaxation.

She estimated that there are tens of thousands of yoga fans and practitioners in the Kingdom.

Moreover, she indicated that Saudi women are very interested in the health and physical aspect and love to learn about a healthy lifestyle, and this is not new, but it has increased a lot in recent times.

“We see that Saudi women contribute and participate in all sectors of sports and health, whether leadership, technical or applied, and this is if it indicates anything. It indicates the awareness, passion and love of Saudi women for development and the support of the rational leadership that opened the fields to support women in all respects to empower them to make a difference not only in society and at the local level, but also at the international level.”

Regarding cooperation with the School Sports Federation at the Ministry of Education, she revealed that the first cooperation took place in March. It was the introduction to yoga in schools, through a virtual lecture for all schools in all regions of the Kingdom and attended by school principals and physical education teachers at all stages of education.

“This is so that we can begin to achieve the committee’s strategy and the goals of the Ministry of Education and the School Sports Federation, with regard to physical activity and the health of students and students and raising the level of sports participation for our children and our daughters at the local and international levels, and to achieve success in this field.”

She indicated that she aspires to achieve the vision and aspirations of wise leadership and to be worthy of the trust given to me by my appointment as chairperson of the Saudi Yoga Committee.

“We also seek to work on the three types of yoga according to the rules and regulations of the committee that we have adopted to achieve the strategy of the Saudi Yoga Committee and the strategy of the Saudi Olympic Committee in raising the level of sports participation and motivating the community and achieving the Kingdom’s vision 2030 in achieving health and physical and psychological well-being for all members of society and supporting the practice of sports even for the elderly and people with needs own.”

Marwaai believes that yoga will expand in Saudi Arabia without a doubt, because it is a desirable sport and has a large fan base, and its fans are many and it is still spreading in the Kingdom, and it is very popular, and this also depends on awareness and regulation of this sport.