Male and female athletes will take part in 45 sports for total prize money of almost $27,000 RIYADH: The organizing committee for the Saudi Games 2022 has announced that 6,000 female and male athletes will compete in 45 sports in the host city Riyadh from March 10-20 for total prize money of almost SR100,000 ($26,654). The opening ceremony will take place at King Fahd International Stadium, with the preliminary qualification round running on Feb. 16 and including locals, amateurs, and professional athletes from the various Saudi sports federations. According to the committee’s official statement, the sports were chosen after evaluating the 13 Saudi provinces based on several criteria, such as the game"s popularity, technicality, rules and regulations at the International Olympic Committee and olympic federations. The sports on show will be archery, athletics, badminton, basketball 5×5, basketball 3×3, beach volleyball, billiards, bowling, boxing, camel racing, chess, cycling (road racing), equestrian (endurance-jumping), electronic games, fencing, football, golf, gymnastics, handball, rowing, judo, jiu-jitsu, karate, kickboxing, Muay Thai, shooting, climbing, skateboarding, squash, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, tennis, triathlon, volleyball, water polo, weightlifting, wrestling, paddling, karting, sambo, aikido, wushu, and balut (traditional card game). The Saudi Games 2022 is one of the Quality of Life initiatives, part of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, which looks to raise participation in physical activity within society. The committee added that opening the door for locals to participate will ensure the initiative’s execution and provide a platform for new talents in various sports. Registration is open until Feb.13 at this link.