González/Granados send world No. 1 Galán/Lebron packing

Doha- After four days of excitement on the courts of the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex, the Ooredoo Qatar Major Premier Padel 2023 is now down to the last four pairs, with Jeronimo González and Álejandro Ruiz Granados, the seventh seeds, set to face fourth-seeds Fernando Belasteguín and Carlos Daniel Gutiérrez while fifth seeds Arturo Coello and Agustín Tapia will square up against Franco Stupaczuk and Martin di Nenno, the second seeds. Gonzále and Granados scripted the major upsets of this tournament by far yesterday as they knocked out the world’s No. 1 and tournament top-seeds Alejandro Galán and Juan Lebrón, last year’s finalists, 6-4, 7-6 (2), in 91 minutes to advance into the last-four. The 20-year-old Coello and his 23-year-old partner, Tapia, overcame Maximiliano Sanchez Aguero and Lucas Campagnolo, the ninth seeds, 6-4, 6-3, in one hour and 22 minutes in the first match of the day. The Spanish/Argentinian duo have been in sensational form at the tournament. In the Round of 32, they defeated qualifiers Inigo Jofre and Luis H. Quesada in straight sets before knocking out Ramiro Moyano and Xisco Gil 6-2, 6-3 in the Round of 16 en route to the quarterfinals. As for Belasteguín and Gutiérrez, their tickets to the semifinals came on the back of a hard-fought victory against Pablo Lima and Jorge Nieto Ruiz, the eight-seeds, whom they defeated 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the last match of the night.  

Arab Judo Championship concludes

Doha: Qatar successfully hosted the Senior Arab Judo Championship at Ali Bin Hamad Al Attiyah Arena with exciting two days of competitions over the weekend. The Championship was utilised as a test event for the World Judo Championships – Doha 2023, which will take place at the same venue from May 7-14. Salha al-Badi secured a silver medal for Qatar in the women’s 57kg category. Other Qatari judokas in action were Mohamed Rabahi (81kg), Khalil Rabahi (81kg), Rida Almarri (100kg), Fatina Bouqehous (52kg), and Kholoud al-Kuwari (78kg). The event also attracted entrants from Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Djibouti, Bahrain, Morocco, Algeria, Iraq, Tunisia, Kuwait, Syria, and Lebanon. The Winners Men -60kg: Adel Hamada (Egypt) -66kg: Abderrahmane Boushita (Morocco) -73kg: Houd Zourdani (Algeria) -81kg: Askerbii Gerbekov (Bahrain) 90kg: Omar El Ramly (Egypt) -100kg: Z Yakub (Bahrain) +100kg: Mohamed Lili (Algeria) Women -48kg: Noura Salem (Egypt) -52kg: Faiza Aissahine (Algeria) -57kg: Soumiya Iraoui (Morocco) -63kg: Taibi Chaimae (Morocco) -70kg: S Bellakehal (Algeria) -78kg: Louiza Ichallal (Algeria) +78kg: Nermine Graoua (Algeria)  

Qatari dressage rider Wejdan Al Malki in contention for Olympics spot

Qatari dressage rider Wejdan Al Malki has made it to the international classification of qualifying for 2024 Olympic Games according to the newly issued list of the International Equestrian Federation (FEI). The 45-year-old Al Malki’s qualification came following her recent show in the Commercial Bank CHI Al Shaqab Presented by Longines Grand Prix dressage event in Doha. Al Malki excelled on her 18-year-old purebred Spanish bay stallion Mango Jacaro. Expressing her delight, Al Malki told QNA that she will now be attending a training camp in Germany, starting next month, in preparation for all international dressage tournaments, the 3-star and 5-star classes, which qualify for the next Olympic Games (Paris 2024). She said she is currently training under Irish trainer Judy Reynolds, accompanied by her horse Mango Jacaro. With support of the Qatar Equestrian Federation and the Qatar Olympic Committee, Al Malki aspires to compete in the international qualifying tournaments for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Al Malki explained that since her childhood she had dreamed of becoming a world-class equestrian rider and her dream has come true by becoming the first Qatari dressage rider and the first Arab woman to compete in the five-star Grand Prix competition in the history of international equestrian.  

Qatar to take on Vietnam in AFC U20 Asian Cup Uzbekistan 2023

Uzbekistan - Qatar  will  be  looking  to  secure a crucial win over high-flying    Vietnam    when  the  two  sides  meet  in  their  second  AFC  U20  Asian  Cup Uzbekistan 2023 Group B encounter today. Qatar suffered a 0-1 loss in the hands of Iran on Wednesday while Vietnam enjoyed a dream start  with  a  1-0  defeat  of  Australia. Following the disappointing result against Iran, head coach Inaki Abadia stressed that Qatar must improve to salvage their campaign. “We are coming off a very tough game against Iran,” said Abadia. “We had our chances but were unable to convert them. We know  where  we  need  to  improve   when    we    face    Vietnam." “One  of  the  key  areas  of  improvement will be ball pos-session.  We must  be  able  to  hold  on  to  the  ball  much  longer. That is crucial for our next game. We must not allow Vietnam to play from box to box,  which  we  did  against  Iran.” Meanwhile, Vietnam, bolstered by  the  win  and  their  impressive   attacking   and   defensive display against Australia,   are   determined   to   maintain  their  momentum  against Qatar.  

England duo Epstein and Goodyear share lead at Qatar Open Amateur Golf Championship

Doha- England’s Sam Epstein joined compatriot Reece Goodyear on top of the leaderboard after the second round of the 37th Qatar Open Golf Amateur Championship on Friday. At the Doha Golf Club, Epstein shot one-under 71 after having carded 75 in the first round for an aggregate of two-over-par 146. Overnight leader Goodyear shot two-over 74 yesterday. Welshman James Nash was a stroke behind the leaders, as he returned a one-over 73 and stay in contention going into the final day. After an opening round of 77, Qatar’s Ali al-Shahrani, winner of the 2021 edition, also made a brilliant comeback with a card of 71 to leapfrog to joint third place with Wales’ Joe Jones as both returned with a total of 148 ahead of the final round today. Another Qatari golfer Saleh al-Kaabi also excelled in the second round yesterday scoring a par 72 to hold joint fourth place with DGC’s Calum Fitzgerald, with both aggregating 149. South-Korea born Russian Daniil Sokolov, 12, who started as joint second with an overnight score of 73, slipped after a card of 77 with Yaseen Le Falher joining the Doha resident yesterday after scoring a brilliant 71 in the second round. The duo is followed by Sultan Abdullah al-Hakam, Omar Khalid Hussain and Greg McClure, who will start the final round five strokes behind the leaders. Today’s winner will confirm a place in the prestigious Commercial Bank Qatar Masters 2023 that will be played from October 26 to 29. The top 10 golfers will also receive special prizes. Leaderboard.

World and homegrown stars to seek glory in ISSF World Cup Shotgun Doha 2023

DOHA -Top shooters from around the world will once again descend at the Lusail Shooting Complex in Qatar to vie for the top honours in the ten-day (March 4-13) exciting ISSF World Cup Shotgun Doha 2023. The championship, organized by the Qatar Shooting & Archery Association (QSAA) under the auspices of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) has attracted 466 shooters from 63 nations. The ISSF World Cup Shotgun Doha 2023 is second of a series of 12 tournaments being held in 11 countries. Announcing the event at a press conference on Thursday, Deputy General Manager of the Championship Jassim Shaheen Al Sulaiti said that QSAA and the Lusail Shooting Complex is all set to host the high-profile tournament. “Lusail shooting range is ready to host this World Cup. We have been preparing for it for the last three months. We hosted the Qatar Open a few weeks ago as preparation and to see how ready we are for this competition. And we hope that we can deliver a good competition and make everyone proud,” he said. Al Saulaiti added: “ISSF World Cup Shotgun Doha 2023 is one of 12 tournaments which take place around the world. The finals will take place in December. Gold medalists from each World Cup during the season will play in the final. This World Cup doesn’t serve as a qualification round for the Olympic Games, but it help players get their ratings up so they can win the qualification to the Olympics by number of points,” Al Sulaiti said. Also present on the occasion were Abdullah Ali Al Hammadi, Chairman of the Technical Committee,and Hamad Yousef Al Obaidly, Chairman of the Media Committee. Hosts Qatar, who will have five shooters in each of the skeet and trap categories for men and women, are aiming for for a number of podium finishes, said Al Sulaiti. Qatar’s Olympian Rashid Al Athba and female shooter Reem Al Sharshani are among the top draws. “The expectation of Qatari shooters at home and outside home is always, always to be on the podium. Especially, we have Reem Al Sharshani who just won a silver medal at the recent Asian Championships. One of our shooters, Al Athba has already qualified for the Olympics and has also won a bronze medal at the World Championships in Croatia few months ago. We have another shooter who got fourth in the World Championship. We are always on the podium or close to the podium, so when it’s at home here, we always hope to get the best result possible,” stressed Al Sulaiti. “Qatari shooters are actually having a very heavy schedule since the last month. They played in five competitions. So they are getting ready for the Asian Games which will be hosted by Qatar and for the Olympics in Paris next year. The Asian Games is very important. It’s the Olympics of Asia. So we love to compete with our neighbours and it’s always a fun and good environment to be in,” Al Sulaiti added.