French football star Karim Benzema, Real Madrid striker, joined the list of international stars who participated in the pioneering Dubai Sports Council initiative “Be fit, be fit, be safe”, which started from Dubai and reached the world, and urged all segments of society To continue sports and physical activity exercises, while maintaining a healthy body and strengthening blood circulation and the immune system in light of the pandemic of the Corona virus (Covid-19), especially during fasting times in the holy month of Ramadan.
Benzema appeared in the video that he sent to the Dubai Sports Council wearing the Emirati dress (Kandora), and said in his message: “To all my friends in the Emirates, and to all Muslims in the world during the blessed month of Ramadan, every person in the world is going through difficult times these days because of a pandemic ( (Kofid-19), so we must strive to help each other during this crisis. Keep in peace and take care of yourself and those you love. May God protect everyone. ”
Benzema is associated with a great relationship with the Emirates, which he visits annually, and he used to visit the country during the holy month of Ramadan. He previously visited Nad Al Sheba Sports Course, which is organized by the Dubai Sports Council and includes many sports competitions, and during his visit he practiced padel tennis with a number of players participating in Game competitions held within the course competitions.
The "Stay Active, Keep You Healthy" initiative attracted a large number of global football stars who participated in awareness messages to the UAE, encouraging training and health preservation under the slogan of this pioneering initiative, as individuals from different nationalities, sports and media institutions, and specialized training centers from Inside and outside the country.
Among the most prominent stars who joined the initiative are Carles Puyol, Gennaro Gattuso, Fernando Sanz, Julio Batista, Christian Karembo, Javier Zanetti, Juan Sebastian Veron, Marco Materazzi, Ashraf Hakimi, Patrick Kluivert, Ryan Giggs, Collina, Eric Abidal, Roberto Carlos, Luis Figo, Nicolas Anelka, Michel Salgado, Hernan Crespo, Ivan Rakitesh, Abdullah Abu Zama, Falcao, Walter Zinga, Massimo Ambrosini, and Michael Silvestre.
A number of Olympic champions participated in the initiative, namely Tunisian Enas Boukri, Moroccan Fatima Al Zahraa Abuoufars, and Swiss Olympic sports champion Ramon Zainhausen. Dubai Sports Council continues to raise awareness of the importance of playing sports. The council’s initiatives have contributed to the continuity of exercise and physical activity through virtual competitions launched by it since the cessation of sports activity in the whole world due to the pandemic of “Covid-19”, among them the challenge of climbing the Burj Khalifa stairway, the challenge of sprint and the challenge of circling the bicycle. Especially for the virtual sporting events that witnessed the organization of many events, and met with wide participation and great success, including «Home Marathon», and electronic games tournaments in football, Dota 2, and other interesting electronic games.
Many former and current international stars, such as Puyol, Gattuso, Zanetti, and Ashraf Hakimi, participated in the initiative.