The Japanese delegation was led by the country's Ambassador to the UAE, Kanji Fujiki, as well as Daichi Suzuki, Head of the Sports Agency, a body established last October.

They reviewed the key challenges and positives encountered during the preparation for an Olympic Games and how to groom a young generation capable of achieving the aspirations of the Japanese team at Tokyo 2020.

The two parties agreed to exchange visits, share expertise, conduct training courses and promote sports partnership between the National Olympic Committees in both countries.

The UAE NOC were represented by Abdul Rahman Al Owais, the Minister of Health and UAE NOC first vice-president, who reiterated how "supporting innovation and excellence is the mainstay of our sports drive on which its vision and objectives hinge in the forthcoming period".

“This can be achieved by harnessing human cadres, grooming young Emirati athletes, and constructing state-of-the-art sports facilities to raise the competitive edge of the UAE to host international events," he added.

Al Owais also reviewed the projects and programmes launched by the National Olympic Committee, which have introduced a variety of different programmes in recent times.

This has included schemes to prepare athletes of different age groups, given that the School Olympic Games finals will be held in Abu Dhabi next month.

This synchronises the launch of the Elite Club as part of Olympic Dream Programme, which aims at grooming "distinguished athletes in individual sports for Tokyo Olympic Games 2020".

Al Owais also highlighted the key tournaments held in the UAE over the past years, along with the upcoming continental and global events, including the 2019 Asian Cup football tournament.

At the end of the meeting, the two parties exchanged mementos, and highlighted the importance of holding such meetings on a regular basis to enhance mutual cooperation in the long term.