Following a successful Resolution at last week's ANOC General Assembly in Bangkok, plans to launch the World Beach Games as a collaboration between ANOC and SportAccord have been given the green light, with the first event set to take place in 2017. 

Sheikh Ahmad, who is also President of the Olympic Council, has dismissed fears it will be an unnecessary event in an overcrowded calendar. 

"For the Olympic Games, you have only beach volleyball at the moment and I think beach football, handball, maybe 3x3 basketball will try to go there, but for other [beach sports] it will be really difficult," he told insidethegames during the 4th Asian Beach Games currently taking place here. 

"So I think we are preparing for them a good environment for some of their events in their sports programme to have somewhere they can participate.

"I am sure a lot of those athletes, in Asian competition or regional competition, or even world competition, nobody will know them.

"But with this multi-sport Games, they will have more potential to show their attitude and talents, and to represent their country and flag and maybe to be more famous in their country." 

Sheikh Ahmad has long seen the World Beach Games as a key part of his legacy as  President of the Association of National Olympic Committees ©Phuket 2014

Sheikh Ahmad used the example of the Asian Beach Games to show the potential of the event, highlighting how since the first edition in Bali in 2008, many International Federations had started "knocking on the door" to be on the programme. 

Sheikh Ahmad claimed the World Beach Games would occupy a unique place in the calendar.

"I think we have to wash our brain to put a strategy, concept, ideals, the whole scenario, and then we will deliver the first Games," he said. 

"It will not touch the Olympic Games and the World Cup but will have its own space.

"It will be a landmark Games in the world.

"We are lucky in that we are starting late, so will have better chance for modernisation, as we don't have a tradition to follow, and will look for the messages of youth.

"We can scope our strategy in ways others can't do because they are related to tradition and the style of the Games, and they cannot afford to change."

The World Beach Games, set to be launched in 2017, is a universal concept which will be not be overly shaped by a particular location, Sheikh Ahmad has claimed ©Phuket 2014

While no host city for the inaugural edition has been revealed, and now seems unlikely to be until next October's ANOC General Assembly in Washington D.C., Sheikh Ahmad claimed the location will come second to the concept of the Games.

"We will put the Games then the country will be only a name," he said.

"We are keen about the Games, not the city.

"Our strategy is that we will know the court, the light, the course, the programme, the message, the partner, the broadcasting, the IT...

"We have all this so the city will be easy."

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