Team Qatar defeat Kyrgyzstan 3-1 to go fourth in group

Doha: Twice Asian Cup champions Qatar strutted their stuff in style at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium on Thursday as the hosts secured their first win of the FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC Asian Qualifiers campaign in Group A defeating Kyrgyzstan 3-1. Almoez Ali put team Qatar in front in the 39th minute before an own goal from Tamirlan Kozubaev 18 minutes into the second half put the back-to-back Asian champions in control of the tie. And while Alimardon Shukurov pulled one back with 14 minutes remaining, Ibrahim Al Hassan restored his side’s two goal cushion five minutes later to seal the win for Qatar, who had lost their opener to the United Arab Emirates and drawn with North Korea. Kyrgyzstan are still looking for their first point of the third phase of the preliminaries after earlier losses to Iran and Uzbekistan and Maksim Lisitsyn’s side are bottom of the Group A standings. Uzbekistan retained their top spot on goal difference after a goalless draw against Iran – second in the group. Both the teams have secured seven appoints apiece from three matches. A pleased Qatar coach Marquez Lopez said, “We created many opportunities and converted them on three occasions. I am happy with team’s overall performance, and most importantly the three points which we have earned from these games,” said the Spaniard. With Iran up next, Akram Afif said Qatar’s “best is yet to come”. “It was not an easy game and we have earned a well-deserved win. We thank fans for their group support today,” he said. Qatar, needing a win to kickstart their campaign, saw Boualem Khoukhi test Erzhan Tokotaev with a long range free-kick six minutes in while Kyrgyz Republic presented a threat on the counter. It was winger Joel Kojo who had his side’s best sight of goal in the early exchanges, stepping inside of Khoukhi to unleash a shot from 20 yards but he pulled his attempt wide. Kojo’s pace down the left was Kyrgyz Republic’s most likely outlet and the Uzbekistan-based winger was released on the half hour mark, once more cutting inside to shoot towards goal. This time his deflected effort was on target, but Meshaal Barsham slapped the ball to safety. With a little over six minutes left in the half the hosts went in front. Edmilson Junior’s corner was nodded on by Khoukhi to Abdelrahman Fahmi and, after his headed attempt came back off the crossbar, Ali was on hand to bundle the ball over the line from barely a yard out with his thigh. Akram Afif squandered a gilt-edged opportunity when he was one-on-one with the goalkeeper, lifting the ball over Tokotaev only for the attempted lob to bounce agonisingly on top of the crossbar. But the Qatari playmaker eventually unlocked the Kyrgyz defence in the 63rd minute, firing in a low cross from the right that Kozubaev turned past his own goalkeeper although Shukurov struck back 14 minutes from time with a blistering finish off the inside of the crossbar. But Al Hassan put the result beyond doubt when he rolled the ball in from 12 yards to give Qatar all three points.

Qatar welcomes back Beach Handball Global Tour

Doha: The final stage of the 2024 IHF Beach Handball Global Tour will take place in Doha, Qatar from 6 to 7 November.   Four men’s teams will participate in the event at the Al Gharafa Beach Stadium, which will see winners of each competition in Doha crowned the 2024 IHF Beach Handball Global Tour champions.   The event in the Asian nation is the third and last stage of the 2024 IHF Beach Handball Global Tour which will visit three continents – South America, Europe and now Asia – following stage 1 in South America (Maricá, Brazil) and stage 2 in Europe (Cádiz, Spain).   Winners from both of the men’s and women’s previous stages, plus the host nation and current IHF Men’s and Women’s Beach Handball World Championship title-holders, automatically qualified for the event in Doha.   In the women’s competition, Brazil (stage 1 winners), Spain (stage 2 winners), Germany (world champions) and Portugal (as replacement for Qatar, who currently do not have a women’s team) will feature.   The men’s competition also features Brazil as stage 1 winners. They are joined by host nation Qatar, stage 2 winners Germany and world champions Croatia.   Last year saw Brazil’s women win 2023 IHF Beach Handball Global Tour: Finals in Doha, seeing off Tunisia, Poland and the People's Republic of China, while host nation Qatar were crowned men’s champions ahead of Brazil, Tunisia and Denmark.  

Qatar Olympic Committee to host 2024 Community Boxing Championship

DOHA - The Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC), in collaboration with the Qatar Boxing Federation, will host the first edition of its community boxing championship on Friday, October 11, 2024, at Oasis Square in Mall of Qatar. The event, scheduled from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM, will feature participants in three age categories: Juniors (ages 15-16), Youth (ages 17-18), and Seniors (ages 19-40). Alongside the boxing matches, there will be engaging competitions and prizes for the public, including activities for children. In a pre-event statement, Mr. Salah Al-Saadi, Assistant Director of the Sports Events Department at the Qatar Olympic Committee, noted that the championship aims to promote sports for all and foster connections between various segments of Qatari society and residents, in line with the committee’s vision: "To Become a Leading Nation in Bringing the World Together Through Sustainable Sports Development." “Boxing is a vital sport for building self-confidence and self-discipline. It enhances muscle endurance, reduces stress, and offers numerous physical and health benefits,” Al-Saadi added. This tournament  is part of the Qatar Olympic Committee’s 2024 community events program, designed to raise awareness of the importance of inclusive sports and to promote boxing as a valuable self-defense sport. The QOC 's calendar features over seventy local and international events each sports season, reaffirming Doha's status as a global sports capital.

Cautious Qatar start as favorites against Kyrgyzstan

Doha: While hosts Qatar may have the tie against Kyrgyzstan weighing a bit on their shoulders, they would surely go in as favourites in the third round Group A match of the 20026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium on Thursday. The game will kick-off at 7pm and a big crowd is expected to cheer the twice Asian champions at home. Qatar, who have had two back-to-back winless games after winning 10 of their previous 11 games, are eager to bounce back strongly and they would look to attack from the word go against Kyrgyzstan, who have faced two consecutive defeats and have won only two of their last ten games across all competitions. In the qualifiers, Qatar suffered a shock 3-1 defeat to United Arab Emirates and then had to survive a nervy encounter against North Korea, with the tie ending 2-2 under challenging conditions in rain. Kyrgyzstan, however, will not be easy opponents as the Central Asian side held their own despite defeats to Iran (1-0) and Uzbekistan (3-2). Qatar know they have to take three points against Kyrgyzstan if they are to keep the top two within touching distance. A win would also make Al Annabi confident ahead of their next away showdown against Iran. A cautious Qatar coach Marquez Lopez, however, called for calm and focus from his players. Speaking at the pre-match media conference, the Spaniard said, “We know the difficulty of this game and our goal is to achieve our first victory in the qualifiers. All players are ready for the match, but we need to stay calm, focused and play without pressure to secure the win.” “We have many outstanding players, and everyone is prepared for this challenge,” he added. To add to Qatar’s attacking strength of Akram Afif, Almoez Ali and Edmilson Junior, Lopez has recalled the much experienced defender Abdelkarim Hassan, who had stood out during Qatar’s 2019 Asian Cup campaign, and Boualem Khoukhi. “Some players, like Abdulkarim Hassan and Boualem Khoukhi, deserve to be considered for the national team. Hassan’s recent performances with Al Wakrah have been impressive, and Boualem has excelled with Al Sadd. Adding these players to the national team would strengthen our squad,” Lopez explained. Regarding Kyrgyzstan, who scored two goals against Uzbekistan and conceded only one against Iran, Lopez said: ‘We’ve thoroughly studied them and understand their playing style. While they’ve scored goals, they’ve also conceded. We’re prepared for any scenario and have developed strategies to help us achieve our objectives. “Although we still have eight matches to go in the qualifiers, there’s still plenty of opportunity to secure a direct spot in the 2026 World Cup. We can achieve this by finishing first or second in our group. Despite some setbacks, we remain confident in our ability to succeed,” Lopez said. Qatar’s player Jassem Gaber said his team will be gunning for a win. “We’ve moved on from the past, and our focus is now on the upcoming match. Our goal is to win. The match is on our home soil and in front of our fans, which gives us great motivation as players,” he said. Kyrgyzstan coach Maksim Lisitsyn, said: “We are fully aware of the strength of the Qatari team, and we will play to achieve victory. “Our preparations have gone well but we faced some difficulties considering that some of the players only joined training in the past few days, but we are very confident in our ability to overcome what happened in the first and second rounds.” “Qatar are champions of Asia in the last two editions. Therefore, our task will not be easy. We know that we are heading towards a match during which we could face many difficulties. We will try to impose our style and not let Qatar play the way they want to,” he added.  

Team Qatar prepares for Asian Men’s Youth Beach Handball Championship

DOHA - Qatar’s U-17 beach handball team is set to depart for Bangkok to compete in the 3rd Asian Men’s Youth Beach Handball Championship, which will be held from October 16 to 25, 2024, in the Kingdom of Thailand. The 10-day tournament will feature seven Asian nations, including Qatar, Oman, Iran, Jordan, China, Indonesia, and hosts Thailand.  This competition also serves as a qualifier for the 3rd IHF Men’s & Women’s Youth (U17) Beach Handball World Championship, scheduled for June 17 to 22, 2025, in Hammamet, Tunisia.  

AFC U20 Asian Cup China 2025 Draw Scheduled for November 7

Doha: The draw for the highly anticipated AFC U20 Asian Cup™ China 2025 will take place on November 7.  Qatar, the 2014 winners, defeated Jordan 3-2 to finish as the Group J winners, with their beaten opponents also advancing after a sterling qualifying campaign.  Qualified Teams: •    Hosts: China PR •    Group Winners: Syria (Group A), Uzbekistan (Group B), Korea Republic (Group C), Saudi Arabia (Group D), DPR Korea (Group E), Indonesia (Group F), IR Iran (Group G), Iraq (Group H), Japan (Group I), Qatar (Group J). •    Best Runners-up: Yemen (Group F), Kyrgyz Republic (Group I), Australia (Group D), Thailand (Group H), Jordan (Group J). On the other hand, Qatar is set to host the Group F matches of the AFC U17 Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2025 Qualifiers. Team Qatar will begin their qualifying campaign on October 23, facing off against Mongolia.