Team Qatar storm into semi-finals of Asian Handball Qualification tournament for Paris 2024

DOHA – Team Qatar  stormed into the semi-finals of the Asian Handball Qualification tournament for 2024 Paris Olympic Games with a comfortable 33-24 win over Saudi Arabia at Al Duhail Indoor Arena on Tuesday. The victory took Qatar’s points tally to 10 at the top of Group A as they maintained their perfect all-win record in the tournament. Qatar will meet Bahrain, who defeated Iran 28-24 to book the second spot in Group B, in the semi-final on Wednesday. In other Group A matches, United Arab Emirates beat India 40-22, and South Korea won 28-23 against China. In Group B, Kuwait overcame Kazakhstan 39-31. Group B leaders Japan will take on South Korea in the second

Commercial Bank Qatar Masters set to tee off with plenty at stake

DOHA - There’s a lot on the line for a number of players at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters, the last ‘regular’ event of the 2023 DP World Tour season. The 26th edition of the Qatar Masters – to be played from Thursday (October 26) to October 29 at the picturesque Doha Golf Club – will offer players the final opportunity to secure their playing privileges for the 2024 campaign via the Race to Dubai Ranking. Those who don’t get inside the top 116 most likely face a return to the Qualifying School or a season on the European Challenge Tour. Denmark’s John Axelsen, who has missed three of his last five cuts, occupies the ‘magic’ 116th spot. Addressing the pre-event press conference on Tuesday, Senior Tournament Director DP World Tour Mikael Eriksson said there will be tough competition for golfers who aim not only to receive the $3.75mn tournament prize but also to garner the ranking points for 2024 via the Race to Dubai. “It’s very important event for players and it’s going to be a tough fight. There are a lot of players, as we say, on the bubble, to keep their playing rights for next year. They are fighting for that. And we also have a lot of players here, but it’s competing for players in the finals. So it’s a very important tournament for everybody,” Eriksson said. The tournament, organised by The Qatar Golf Association (QGA) also offers the chance to qualify for the Nedbank Golf Challenge in November as the top 50 on the end of season rankings will contest the DP World Tour Championship. After last week’s final event of the campaign on European soil, the Tour returns to the Middle East with one 132 taking part in the event with Ewen Ferguson of Scotland defending the title. Ferguson claimed his maiden Tour title last year in Qatar after producing a solid finish in windy conditions to win by one shot. “The Commercial Bank Qatar Masters has once again attracted a field of top golfers. We are looking forward to an exciting action this weekend as we welcome the players and fans. I would like to thank our main sponsor Commercial Bank of Qatar for their continued support. I also want to thank the participating golfers and wish them luck,” the QGA President Hassan Al Naimi said. Talking about the condition, Eriksson said the course will play tougher this time. “The course is in immaculate condition. And obviously, at this time of the year, now when the Bermuda rough is up, the course will play tougher. The golfers have really enjoyed coming here over so many years, and the golf course is improving every year. The course is in excellent condition and I am very happy how the course is played and set up. The field is strong so we expect a tough fight particularly among top 100 players. There will be less wind and I think the scoring will be good because I think the greens are excellent, in very good condition.” Founded in 1998, the tournament was one of six in the Arabian Peninsula at one point, while it was co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour from 2005 to 2007. A host of big names have claimed the title from Sergio Garcia to Adam Scott, with Ferguson the victor last year, becoming the first Scot to win the event. Tom Phillips, Head of Middle East, DP World Tour, said: “We are in the 26th year of the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters which is a great achievement. We value this event and it’s an important tournament for us.” Meanwhile, the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters Pro-Am 2023 will be held on Wednesday.

QOA Concludes Olympic Education Workshop

DOHA  - The Qatar Olympic Academy (QOA) concluded Tuesday the periodical Olympic Values Education Workshop, organized in cooperation with the International Olympic Academy and Olympic Solidarity at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and held at the QOA headquarters, other event venues, and schools. The workshop was presented by Dr. Ali Al Bakri, Director of Sports Management Programs and National Representative of the State of Qatar in the Association of Participants in the International Olympic Academy, where more than eighty students from various disciplines and functional fields participated in this workshop. The workshop dealt with several topics and axes, the most important of which was the emergence of the ancient Olympic Games and the Olympic values related to the Olympic Games, which IOC founding member and former President Pierre de Coubertin stressed, as he aimed not only to excel in performance but to advance ideas, educational values, and human ethics while emphasizing the importance of equality and respect for others. These values span almost 3,000 years of Olympic history.   

Al Tamimi cruises to QSF 4 quarterfinals

Doha: Qatar’s Abdulla Al Tamimi qualified to the quarterfinals of the QSF 4 Bronze after defeating India’s Velavan Senthilkumar in the second round at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex yesterday. In the quarterfinals, Al Tamimi will take on Switzerland’s Dimitri Steinmann who edged past Spain’s Bernat Jaume in the second round. In the other match of the second round, Egypt’s Fares Desouki defeated India’s Bhay Singh 3-2 while Germany’s Raphael Kandra downed Malaysia’s Addeen Idrakie 3-0. Moreover, Tarek Momen began his campaign in the tournament with a 3-0 victory over Portugal’s Rui Soares and Omar Mosaad overpowered England’s Simon Herbert 3-1. Khalid Al Khelaifi, Head of the QTSBF National Teams Committee stressed the importance of tournament as it brings together a big number of world’s top ranked squash players. Al Khelaifi added that the participation of the wild-card entrants Ahmed Al Tamimi and Waleed Zaman in the event comes in light of the federation’s strategy to provide its players with the opportunity to develop their skills. Head of the QTSBF National Teams Committee also lauded show of Abdullah Al Tamimi who defeated India’s Velavan Senthilkumar to reach the quarterfinals.

Qatar’s Ali Arshad wins bronze in 100-m wheelchair race at Asian Para Games

Hangzhou: Team Qatar star Ali Arshad claimed the bronze medal of the 100-m wheelchair race at the 2022 Asian Para Games on Monday.  The event is taking place at the Chinese city of Hangzhou until October 28 with the participation of 43 countries. Ali Arshad's bronze win came after he achieved third place in the race, recording a time of 15.60 seconds, while Thailand's Chaiwat Rattana came in first place and won gold with a time of 15.18 seconds, and China's Zhong Wenhao won second place and won silver with a time of 15.55 seconds. Ali Arshad will compete tomorrow in the 800-meter wheelchair race. The Qatari delegation to the Asian Para Games, headed by Assistant-Secretary of the Qatar Sports Federation for Special Needs, Abdul Qadir Al Mutawa, includes 18 individuals, including nine male and female players, four coaches, a technical director, a physical therapist, and a companion. Executive Director of the Qatar Paralympic Committee Amir Al Mulla arrived Sunday in the Chinese city of Hangzhou to attend the games. Head of the Qatari delegation Abdul Qadir Al Mutawa expressed his happiness with Ali Arshad winning the bronze medal in the 100-meter wheelchair race.  Al Mutawa said that Qatari star Ali Arshad was able to win bronze after a strong and exciting competition from Chinese and Thai players and achieved the first medal for the delegation in the competition. He added that this medal is valuable, especially since this is the first participation of our player Ali Arshad in an Asian Para Games, and they look forward to achieving more crowns in the rest of the competitions. For his part, Executive Director of the Qatar Olympic Committee Amir Al Mulla praised the achievement made by the player Ali Arshad in opening the competitions and achieving the first medals for the Qatari delegation. Al Mulla said in a similar statement that their player Ali Arshad is young, and the future is ahead of him, and we are counting on him a lot for future achievements.  

IHF President hails Qatar's Organization of Sports Events

Doha: President of the International Handball Federation (IHF) Dr. Hassan Mustafa hailed Qatar's organization of the Asian Men's Handball Qualifications for the Paris 2024 Olympics, currently held in Doha and lasts until Oct. 28 with the participation of 11 national teams. In his remarks to Qatar News Agency (QNA), he said that the organization is at the highest level, not only from his point of view but as seen by all participating delegations. Regarding the technical level of the Asian handball qualifiers, Dr. Hassan Mustafa said that the matches held so far showed the development of the level of the game in Asia, adding that new teams are heating the competition, such as Japan, which was the first to qualify for the semi-finals, in addition to the return of Kuwait with a young team. Dr. Hassan Mustafa added that what caught his attention in the qualifiers is the presence of a Gulf women's refereeing team that runs men's matches, noting that in general, the Asian qualifiers are going well so far. The President of the IHF pointed out that changing the qualification system for the Olympic Games gave a greater opportunity for teams from outside Europe to advance to the Olympics.  He said that the old system required that the top seven places in the World Championships qualify directly for the Olympics, and they were always European teams. Therefore, that system had to be changed, and this has actually led to the qualification of teams that would have been difficult to participate in the Olympics under the previous qualification system. Regarding the level of Qatari handball, Dr. Hassan Mustafa indicated that the Qatari team was the first team from outside Europe to reach the final match and achieve second place in the Men's World Championship, which was held in Doha in 2015. This was an achievement not only for Qatari sports but also for Arab sports, which clearly shows the development of the game's level that has made many achievements in recent years.