Aspire gives considerable support for Schools Olympic Program

DOHA, November 08, 2017 – The Schools Olympic Program since its inaugural version has been keeping distinctive partnerships with different authorities and institutions in the country.The prestigious event has used several logos in each year connected to a certain institution, including the sport and health, sport and education, sport and culture and sport and media.Aspire Academy remained as one of these institutions who keeping a lasting partnership with the SOP management in each version. The Academy is using its playgrounds and Indoor halls to host all the SOP competitions and ensuring its success.In a press release on Tuesday, Mr. Said Ali Al Marri, the Football affairs section director at the Aspire Academy confirmed that the cooperation between the Aspire and SOP is exceptional and valuable.Al Marri underlined that SOP is classified as one of the most important sporting and educational mechanisms help unveiling the skills and talents of school students.The SOP is held annually as a collaborative effort of Qatar School Sports Federation (QSSF) and Ministry of Education and Higher Education, with hundreds of student athletes competing from all over Qatar. The SOP committee aims to spread a culture of sports throughout Qatar's schools and to engage the entire community in active and healthy lifestyles while retaining local values and traditions.

Qatar defeat Lebanon in AFC U-19 Qualifiers Opener

DOHA, November 07, 2017- Qatar got their AFC U-19 qualifiers off to a good start beating Lebanon 2-0 at the Al Arabi Stadium in their Group C opener on Monday to set up a mouth-watering clash with Iraq on Wednesday. First half goals from Hisham Ali saw off the hard-fighting Lebanese team who had lost their opener against Iraq on Saturday.The withdrawal of Afghanistan meant the group was reduced to three with automatic qualification for the group leader. The top five second-placed team will also qualify for the 16-team main event to be hosted by Indonesia in 2019.Khaled Mohammed tested the Lebanese goalie in the first minute of the game from a set piece. His ball caught Antoine Aldouaihy napping but the Lebanese goalie gathered after a second attempt.Lebanon gave Qatar a scare just before the 20th minute mark when striker Daniel Abou Fakher played in a seemingly harmless cross from the right left goalkeeper Shehab scrambling as it grazed the top post. Daniel missed a sitter for Lebanon after a mazy run down the left by Khalil Bader had opened up the young Maroons and his deflected shot fell in the path of Daniel who placed it wide.Lebanon grew into the game and stray passes by the home team made their task easier and Fakher again could have made them pay but he dragged his shot just wide.Qatar defender Ahmed Suhail was lucky not to have been shown a straight red card from a clumsy tackle in front of the referee. A loose ball in midfield saw the visitors try to break but was stopped by a hard tackle from the young defender.However on the stroke of half time, Hisham Ali put the hosts ahead against the run of play. Lebanon's goalkeeper Khaier faied to hold on to a cross from the left by captain Ahmed Albakheet and the ball fell right in the part of Hisham who calmly slotted home to give Qatar the lead.Just before the half time whistle, Qatar doubled their advantage from a quick counter attack. Ali picked up a clearance right outside the box and his pass found Abdulrasheed Umaru who with no one to beat returned the favour an Ali tapped in from close range. The young Maroons began the second half where they left off and could have added to their lead but where thwarted by poor finishing and good defending. Umaru shrugged off his marker but his cutback pass to an umarked Nasser Alahrak was blazed over the bar with the goalie at his mercy. Umaru also had a shot at goal but saw his header well wide off the mark.Lebanon almost pulled one back as substitute Mahmoud Kawar found space in the box. The striker saw his first shot blocked but latched on to his rebound but his second effort grazed the top corner of Shehab's post.Aldouaihy produced a fine stop late in the game as Nasser Alahrak turned his man inside and tried to place the ball in the top corner of the post but the young Lebanese goalie was able to parry to safety.

Qatar team into Arab Beach Volleyball Championship Quarterfinals

OMAN , November 07, 2017 – Qatar team (A) consists of Ahmed Tijan and Sherif Younis has confidently booked spot in the last eight stage of the 26th edition of Arab's Men Beach Volleyball Championships 2017, following their 2-1 victory over hosts Oman team A in Muscat on Monday.Qatar team A displayed impressive performance to defeat the home side Oman team A (15-21, 21-19 and 13-15. It is worth mentioning that Qatar team A opened campaign in the event with a 2-0 victory over Yemen earlier on Monday.On the same track of victory, Qatar team (B) comprising the duo Abdulaziz Ahmed and Mahadi Badr thrashed Moroccan counterparts 2-0 (15-21, 12-21) on Monday and they are due to face Jordan on Tuesday.Qatar team (A) is pooled in group A alongside with Yemen team (A) , Jordan team (B) and Oman team (A).While Group B includes, Qatar team (B), Bahrain (A), Morocco, as group C bringing together Sudan, Bahrain (B), Yemen (B) and Group D includes Lebanon, Jordan (A), Oman (B).

Qatar’s Barshim shortlisted for IAAF’s 2017 World Athlete of the Year Award

DOHA, November 07, 2017- Qatar's world champion high jumper and Rio Olympics silver medalist Mutaz Essa Barshim on Monday expectedly made the shortlist for the IAAF's World Athlete of the Year 2017 award along with Britain's long distance star Mo Farah, South Africa's 400m champion Wayde Van Niekerk.One of this trio will succeed retired Jamaican sprint legend Usain Bolt, the current holder of the accolade. The winners will be announced at the IAAF Athletics Awards in Monaco on November 24.The men's and women's finalists were whittled down from an original list of 10 by a vote of IAAF council members, fans and fellow athletes. Last Thursday Barshim was honoured as Asia Best 2017 Athlete by the Association of National Olympic Committees in Prague.On August 13, 2017, Barshim won the world high jump title when he completed a faultless series at the World Championships in London culminating in a winning leap of 2.35 metres.Barshim's mark of 2.43m is the second-highest in world history after Cuban Javier Sotomayor's 2.45m set 24 years ago.At the Olympic Stadium in London, Barshim was a class apart, having qualified without a fail and he went through to the final never looking remotely close to dislodging the bar as he flexed his body into biology-defying shapes.Mo Farah won the 10,000-meter title and a silver medal in the 5,000 at the world championships in London, while Van Niekerk defended his 400 title and finished second in the 200. Ethiopia's 10,000m Olympic champion Almaz Ayana is in the running to win a second successive women's world athlete of the year honour. She is up against Greek polevault star Ekaterini Stefanidi and Nafissatou Thiam, Belgium's heptathlon Olympic and world gold medallist.The women's nominees were Ethiopian distance runner Almaz Ayana, Greek pole vaulter Ekaterini Stefanidi and heptathlon world champion Nafissatou Thiam of Belgium.The IAAF says the finalists were determined by a"three-way voting process." Half of the votes came from the IAAF Council, 25 percent from the IAAF member federations and committee members, and the remaining portion from a public vote conducted by social media.

Al Sadd and Qatar SC teams off to Lebanon for Arab Club Table Tennis Championships

DOHA, November 07, 2017 – Al Sadd and Qatar SC teams left Doha on Tuesday to Lebanon to participate in the 29th version of Arab Club Table Tennis Championships 2017 will take place from 8-12 November in Lebanon.Al Sadd team delegation includes, Faraj Al Ghanem (technical supervisor and Head of the delegation), Said bin Mahfooz (Head of Table Tennis section), Magdi Zaqzooq, vice-chairman of Table Tennis section and Qasim Hussain Ali (Administrator) alongside three players.Meanwhile, Qatar SC team delegation includes, Abdulgader Al Araiqi (Administrator), besides players Ahmed Khalil Al Mohannadi, Mohammed Abdulwahab, Nawaf Al Malki and professional Chinese player Cheng Beng.The men's competitions will bring together Army (Iraq), Brighty (Iraq), Sports Complex (Palestine), Sinjel Sports Club (Palestine), Army (Lebanon), Fadi Akdas (Lebanon), South Toll (Lebanon), Seeb (Oman), Al Maadi (Egypt), Sports Association (Algeria), Sana (Yemen), Al Shaban (Sudan), Al Sadd (Qatar) and Qatar SC (Qatar).Eight more teams will participate in Women's competitions. On the sidelines of the event, the general assembly meeting of the Arab Table Tennis Federation will be held on November 11.

Top stars head for Longines Global Champions Tour Final in Doha

DOHA, November 07, 2017- An all-star cast of eight out of the world's top 10 riders are heading to Al Shaqab, Qatar, for this weekend's climax of the 2017 Longines Global Champions Tour and Global Champions League.Harrie Smolders (NED), Scott Brash (GBR), Eric Lamaze (CAN), Lorenzo de Luca (ITA), Gregory Wathelet (BEL), Kevin Staut (FRA), Peder Fredricson (SWE) and Maikel van der Vleuten (NED) will all be in action at the final leg of the season.There will be a captivating battle for the final overall ranking places after a season of phenomenal Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix action across the world in stunning locations.With competition reaching new heights this year, the LGCT season has seen nail-biting split second finishes from the best horse and rider combinations who consistently compete at every event (to check out our special LGCT Season So Far video click here.Talking about the top calibre events, Scott Brash said: “The level of competition on the GCT circuit is so high, so to win a Grand Prix or League class you and your horse have to be at the absolute top of your game."Lorenzo de Luca said he will be “giving everything" to keep his second place in the overall LGCT championship ranking and said: “GCT is one of the best and most difficult circuits in the world."New LGCT Champion Harrie Smolders, who made history this year by taking the title at the penultimate event in Rome, said: “In the Global Champions Tour the level is very, very high because we have the best horses and the best riders in the world. A higher level is not possible."Walter von Känel, President of Longines, said: “We are pleased to be back at the magnificent Al Shaqab Equestrian Centre which will once again provide the perfect backdrop for this much-awaited final of the series. Our brand also looks forward to the weekend's highlight, the Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Doha, to which we lend our name."Lorenzo de Luca (ITA) currently sits in second with 260 points overall, with Christian Ahlmann (GER) just three points away on 257. Alberto Zorzi (ITA) is only a two-point whisker away on 255 points. Maikel van der Vleuten (NED) and two-time LGCT Champion Scott Brash (GBR), on 247 and 245 points respectively, will be formidable opponents in the final deciding LGCT Grand Prix of 2017.In the Global Champions League race to the finish line, teams are tactically fielding heavy-weight combinations for the final push for the overall ranking and season prize money. Hamburg Diamonds and Valkenswaard United lock horns for the final time in 2017 after their intensive duel for the title crown saw them pull ahead of the pack on points. Other teams including Miami Glory, Paris Panthers, Mexico Amigos, St Tropez Pirates, London Knights, Doha Fursan Qatar, Rome Gladiators and Shanghai Swans will be jostling for an overall GCL Top 10 finish.The finals will play out on the grand stage of Al Shaqab, a member of the Qatar Foundation. This year, Al Shaqab celebrates it's 25th anniversary, and the three day event from 9th - 11th November will hold something for all the family, with a kids entertainment area, Arabian displays and a special show to celebrate the anniversary. National riders will also compete with the opportunity to see their home and Olympic heroes such as Sheikh Ali Bin Khalid Al Thani (QAT) and Bassem Hassan Mohammend (QAT) in action.Other top riders competing in Doha include Simon Delestre (FRA), Edwina Tops-Alexander (AUS), Daniel Deusser (GER), Marco Kutscher (GER), Pieter Devos (BEL), Ben Maher (GBR), Bertram Allen (IRL), Laura Kraut (USA), Marlon Zanotelli (BRA) and Lauren Hough (USA).Winners of LGCT Grand Prix this season will also be competing including Mexico City winner Martin Fuchs (SUI), Miami Beach winner Jérôme Guery (BEL), Cannes winner Sergio Alvarez Moya (ESP), and Rome winner Evelina Tovek (SWE).