Today's Edition
KUUMAR SHYAM (ABU DHABI)
Catch them young, as the adage goes, and that is precisely the premise for a new grassroots initiative bringing world-class golf instruction to UAE schools.
Dubai-based elite British golfer Tommy Fleetwood is giving back to his adopted home by introducing a specialist golf academy linked to the UAE's school system.
The programme, launched in collaboration with GEMS School of Research & Innovation (SRI), aims to provide students aged between three and 18 with a structured pathway into the sport without compromising their academic pursuits.
The year-round curriculum spans pre-prep through to senior school levels, integrating professional coaching, state-of-the-art simulator technology, and structured competition directly into the educational environment.
Fleetwood, who operates academies in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi, emphasised that the Tommy Fleetwood Academy (TFA) aims to integrate athletic development seamlessly into academic life.
“The reason we created TFA was to give young people the opportunity to experience golf in the right way,” he said. “Whether a child picks up a golf club for the first time and simply finds a game they love, or whether they have the talent and ambition to take it much further, we want there to be a pathway for them.”
Fleetwood added: “What makes this partnership particularly exciting is the opportunity to bring that philosophy into the school environment. Golf doesn’t have to be something that children fit around their education; it can become part of their development. With the coaching, technology and facilities available, we can introduce more children to the game while also providing a genuine pathway for those who want to see how far they can go.”
Beyond strokeplay instruction, the curriculum utilises advanced sports performance analytics alongside strength and conditioning support, mental performance training, and media communication skills.
GEMS Education Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Jay Varkey, noted that the initiative aligns with a broader shift towards accommodating student ambitions within the school structure.
“Education should create room for a young person's ambitions to become real, not simply ask them to fit those ambitions around school,” Varkey said. “Our goal is straightforward: to create an environment in which students can discover what they are capable of, develop that ability with the right expertise and, where they choose, take it into competitive settings.”
The initiative aligns with the ministries of sports and education to introduce sports early in the extracurricular activities of pupils, while also embedding elite-level sports infrastructure within the UAE’s youth sports landscape.
