Qatar to Face Iran in Final of Four-nation Friendly Tournament in Jordan

Amman, October 16 (QNA) - Qatar's national team will face Iran at Amman international stadium on Tuesday in the final match of the four-nation friendly tournament being hosted by Jordan's capital Amman. Last Friday, Qatar beat Iraq 6-5 on penalties after both the teams had played a goalless draw in regulation time, while Iran beat hosts Jordan 3-0. Jordanian team will take on Iraqi counterpart in a third place play-off to decide who finishes third and fourth. The Qatari national team held its final training session today at the match stadium, during which coach Carlos Queiroz put the final touches on the lineup that will play in tomorrow's match. It is expected that coach Queiroz will keep the same squad that played in the previous match against Iraq led by goalkeeper Mishal Barshim and captain Hassan Al Haydos, as well as the trio of Akram Afif, Almoez Ali and Yousef Abdelrazaq. The tournament is within the team's preparations ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers and the AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023. The four teams are also preparing to compete in the Asian Cup finals which will be held in Qatar from January 12 to February 10.   

QHA-President-Says-All-Preparations-Set-for Asian-Men's-Handball-Qualification-for-Paris-2024

Doha, October 16 (QNA) - President of the Qatar Handball Association (QHA) Ahmed Al Shaabi said that all preparations are set for the Asian Men's Handball Qualification for 33rd Summer Olympic Games (Paris 2024), to kick off in Doha on Wednesday, running until Oct. 28. In a press conference today, Al Shaabi said that 11 teams will compete in the Asian Men's Handball Qualification, and these are the teams of Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, India, Iran, South Korea, Japan, China, and Kazakhstan, adding that the first-place winner will qualify directly for the Olympics, whereas the second place holder will go to play-offs. He added that Qatar is hosting the Asian Men's Handball qualifiers for the third consecutive time, having previously hosted the Rio 2016 Asian Qualifiers; the first time the Qatar handball team qualifies for the Olympic Games, in addition to hosting the Tokyo 2020 Asian Qualifiers. The QHA President said that team Qatar is ready for the qualifiers, after having competed recently in the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou, winning the gold medal for the third consecutive edition. He explained that although there are only around ten days between the Hangzhou Asian Games and the Olympic qualifiers, in addition to injuries among the team, only that team Qatar is ready and aims to make it to the first place and qualify for Paris 2024.   

QOC participates in Executive Board meeting of GCC Olympic Committees

Muscat: The Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) participated in the 97th Executive Board meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Olympic Committees, which was held today in Muscat, Oman under the leadership of the Oman Olympic Committee Secretary General H.E. Mr. Taha Al Kishry. The QOC delegation to the meeting was led by QOC Secretary General H.E. Mr. Jassim bin Rashid Al Buenain. The meeting discussed the importance of international cooperation and strategic dialogue with countries and international organizations, as well as benefiting from the outstanding experiences and capabilities of these countries in the field of sports. The members approved the recommendations and outcomes of the advisory committees' meetings. Furthermore, the Executive board members also reviewed the reports of the first GCC Youth Games to be held in the UAE and the first GCC Indoor and Martial Arts Games to be staged in Saudi Arabia.

Al Tamimi wins thriller to retain QSF 3 title

Doha: Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi defended his QSF 3 title in dramatic fashion, saving three match balls en route to beating No.1 seed Eain Yow Ng in a five-game thriller in Doha.  Playing on home soil as the No.2 seed, the Al Tamimi was looking to follow up his success in this event last year when he beat Leonel Cardenas 3-0 in the final, but dropped the first game 11-9 this time around.  The Qatari No.1 reversed the scoreline in the second to level the match, and stormed into the lead after three, winning six straight points to go from 5-3 to 11-3 and move to within one game of victory.  The Malaysian was not going down without a fight, though, and made sure the match would go to a decider when he closed out game four 11-8.  He then found himself on the brink of glory at 9-5 and then 10-7 up, needing to win one of just the next three points for victory.  But all three went the way of Al Tamimi, who then squandered a championship point of his own at 11-10, before eventually clinching the title with a stroke at 12-11 up.  The win was Al Tamimi’s first over Eain Yow in five attempts, and secures his eighth title on the PSA Tour.  

Qatar Olympic team defeat Kuwait in home friendly

DOHA: Qatar Olympic football team defeated Kuwait in a friendly match yesterday at the  Thani  bin  Jassim Stadium. Tamim Mansour Muftah scored the winner in the 59th minute.  The match comes as part of the two teams’ preparations for AFC U-23 Cup tournament qualifiers. Qatar will host the AFC U-23 Cup next year from April 15 to May 3. It is also a qualifying event for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games. The coach of the Qatar team, Portuguese Elidio Vale had called a total of  32  players  to  line  up  for  the  competition. The team participated in the Asian Games in  China  and  were  eliminated  from the round of 16 after losing to hosts 0-1  

Curtain comes down on WTT Youth Star Contender Doha 2023

Doha: Yashaswini Ghorpade has upended the seedings at WTT Youth Star Contender Doha 2023, taking down the U19 Girls' Singles title. Going in to the event as a wildcard, Ghorpade made the most of the opportunity as she topped the podium by defeating 2nd seed Yuna Ojio 3-2 (7-11, 15-13, 11-5, 8-11, 11-9). The unique stylings of Ojio's katana grip saw her charge to an early lead. She held in front the entire way to comfortably win the opening game. Game two would prove decisive. Ghorpade seemed to find her rhythm, racing in front 7-2. But the 15-year-old from Japan returned the favour, posting eight consecutive points to give herself three game points for a seemingly unassailable lead. Ghorpade fought back, saving each game point to level the score at deuce. Once again Ojio had chances to close things out, finding three more game points throughout deuce, but she was unable to convert. The Indian rising star notched-up a game point of her own at 14-13, and immediately seized the chance, winning 15-13 and levelling the scoreboard 1-1. From then on it was a see-saw match. Both players had long strings of points, exchanging momentum. Ultimately it was Ghoparde who found herself in front at the right time, closing out the match in five tight games for the win. The victory in Doha is Ghorpade's second in WTT Youth Series 2023, having previously taken down the U19 title at WTT Youth Contender Rio de Janeiro 2023. With Youth Star Contender points now in the bag, the World Youth No.22 will see a big jump when the Week 42 rankings drop this Tuesday. Yuna Ojio didn't leave Doha empty handed. Teaming up with Hana Goda, the unique partnership threw a spanner in the works of the U19 Girls' Doubles. Rivals turned teammates, it was a first-time pairing that immediately brought dividends. In a dramatic final the duo held out to defeat Liu Xinran and Goa Yuxin 3-2 (11-8, 3-11, 11-6, 3-11, 11-9). Ojio also took down the U15 Girls' Singles and paired with Tamito Watanabe for the U15 Mixed Doubles to leave Qatar with a suitcase full of trophies. In the U19 Boys' Singles World Youth No.6 Wen Ruibo continued his unstoppable ways on the youth scene. The 16-year-old struck gold once again, picking up his first Youth Star Contender title of the year with a 3-1 (12-10, 11-9, 5-11, 15-13) against Milosz Redzimski. Wen's title in Doha added to the silverware already collected this year in Spa, Bangkok and Panagyurishte.