Brainchild of Abdelatif Benazzi, the French international ex rugby union captain and native of Oujda, the Oriental Legends Pro-Am is a fund raising golf event that attracted a select group of leading celebrities from the world of Sport, Media and Television, who played alongside invited golf professionals from France and Morocco.
The aim of the Event was to raise funds for the "Association Noor", a charity created by Abdelatif ten year ago to build schools in some of the more remote parts of the Oriental region of Morocco. The group of participating celebrities included Guy Drut (Olympic 110m hurdle gold medallist), Antoine Kambouare (Ex Paris St.Germain manager), Olivier Girault (Olympic handball gold medallist), Christophe Pinna (World and Olympic gold Karate champion), Cedric Heymans (French international rugby player), Bruno Saby (Rally driver), Rochdy Zem (actor), Patrick Poivre d’Arvor (television celebrity) and Sebastien Amiez (French Alpine skier), to name but a few.
The event was played over two days on the Golf de Saïdia course, recently taken over by the Societé de Développement de Saidia (SDS), a fully owned subsidiary of the CDG Group. Braemar Golf, the St Andrews based golf management, construction and advisory company who have a joint venture in Morocco with Compagnie Générale Immobiliére (CGI) recently took over the management of Golf de Saïdia.
Andrew Glen, General Manager of Braemar Golf (Maroc) commented "We are delighted the event has been a success for Abdelatif and especially the funds they raised. The golf course was in excellent condition and this was our first major event since our appointment and so is an important initial step to ensure this great resort golf course plays its part in relaunching Saïdia as a top quality golf and beach destination".
Played in a spirit of giving and fun, the tournament was a wonderful opportunity for the participating celebrities to mix with the pupils of the schools the Association Noor helped to build. Involved as caddies during the golf tournament, the pupils got the chance to challenge their sporting idols in a game of beach football the following day.
The event was a wonderful success with Abdelatif announcing at the prize giving that the event had raised enough money to build a new school in the region - a fitting end to a great event.
Association NOOR, founded in 2003 by Abdel Benazzi, former captain of France Rugby, has its main objective to renovate or build schools in rural and remote areas where schooling is done in difficult social contexts, geographic conditions and inadequate infrastructure . The goal is to gain or regain a route to school for these children to prevent illiteracy and give them a chance to build a better future.
Golf de Saïdia, an 18 hole resort course designed by Francisco Segales situated in the Saidia Resort, one of Morocco's most important Tourism Developments. Saïdia Resort includes one of the largest marinas in the Mediterranean, along with 3 existing hotels comprising over 1,500 rooms, commercial centre and food and beverage outlets, all in a spectacular location along 6km of the Mediterranean coast. Additional golf is planned in future phases.
Braemar Golf, Maroc is a golf services company based in Casablanca, Morocco and a joint venture between Braemar Golf, St Andrews and Compagnie Générale Immobiliére. Currently managing the development and pre-opening of Casa Green Golf Club, Casablanca and L’Oasis de Noria Resort, Marrakech as well as Golf de Saïdia on the Mediterranean Coast. Braemar Golf will manage the golf assets of CGI and other opportunities in Morocco’s fast growing golf industry.
