Britain led the way in the medals standings at the event last month with 23 golds for a total of 46, leaving Russia in second position with 17 golds and Switzerland in third with 11 golds.

However, UAE came in a creditable seventh overall with 25 medals and three golds and Berregad insisted they must build on the display.

"We need the Government to get involved, we need parents and society to support our para-athletes," he said.

"Our medal haul at the IWAS World Junior Games here was much better than what we achieved at the event in the Czech Republic last year.

"But what we seriously need is more involvement from our people, be it residents or sports-lovers."

The UAE made its debut in the Paralympics at Barcelona in 1992 and has since won a total of nine medals, with the only gold coming at Athens in 2004 when Mohammed Khamis Khalaf triumphed in powerlifting.  

"We need society to back these athletes so that they can come up with even better performances in the future," said Berregad.

"It's important to have a proper support for these Para-athletes.

"These are the stars of the future for the UAE and we all need to put our hands together and support them.

"At times during the IWAS Games, I felt embarrassed seeing the support given to the outstation para-athletes by their parents and support staff, while our athletes did not even have their own parents coming to support them though the Games were held in Dubai.

"We all belong to the same world and yet we find that we are incapable of identifying with these athletes just because we do not think of them as normal."

The IWAS World Junior Games last month attracted more than 200 young disabled athletes from 21 countries competing in table tennis, powerlifting and track and field events.

"Our athletes showed they are capable of competing at the highest stage, and the least we can do as citizens is get involved in their lives, support and encourage them," Berregad added.

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