Qatar's Yaman Al Natsheh claims bronze medal in 2023 Karate 1-Youth League

Fujairah: The Qatari karate player, Yaman Al Natsheh, won the bronze medal in the 2023 Karate 1-Youth League in Fujairah, UAE, with the participation of more than 1,200 male and female players representing 70 countries.The Qatar Karate Team participates in the tournament with three players: Yaman Al Natsheh in less than 67 kg, Abdullah Rashad in less than 84 kg and Mohammed Younes in "Kata" category.The Qatari Karate team coach Mustafa Ahmamy, expressed to Qatar News Agency (QNA) his happiness at Yaman's winning, he said Yaman achieved positive results during his participation in the tournament, as he scored three consecutive victories, but lost in the semi-finals after he faced the Moroccan (world champion) to win the bronze.Ahmamy explained that the results achieved during this participation are an incentive for the Qatari players to prepare well for the upcoming tournaments, as the Qatari national team will participate in the Asian Championships in Malaysia on Aug, 2023 and then participate in the 26th Karate World Senior Championships in Budapest on Oct. 24-29 2023. (QNA)

Commercial Bank CHI AL SHAQAB Presented by Longines gets underway

Doha: USA’s Kate Shoemaker, riding Quiana, was the overall winner of the Para-Dressage Grand Prix CPEDI3* on the first of three days of world-class equestrian sport at the Commercial Bank CHI AL SHAQAB Presented by Longines 2023. The American rider’s final score was a remarkable 76.250% – her personal best on this horse in the Grand Prix A test. The para-dressage (CPEDI 3*) winner Kate Shoemaker has been building an ever-closer relationship with her 9-year-old mare for the past year, since they first performed together at the 2022 CHI AL SHAQAB. En route, they even took a silver medal at the World Championships in Herning, Denmark – though the young mare had never actually been intended as Kate’s ride there, but instead replaced her older horse in a late substitution. A Grade IV para-athlete with a degree of motor control dysfunction, Kate has been making a great impact with Quiana – whose name, fittingly, means ‘graceful one’. The pair are now targeting next year’s Paris Paralympics where, thanks in part to this result, they should be among the favourites. Second and third places went to Demi Haerkens of the Nertherlands and Manon Claeys of Belgium, respectively. Speaking to the media, Kate said: “It went amazingly well today and Quiana performed beautifully for me. It’s not easy for horses coming from the cold of Europe to adjust to the heat here, so we let her rest as much as possible, to be sure she was ready for the competition. I’m thrilled to have come out on top.” The first of the CSI5* jumping events, held over a course of 1.45m fences, was won by Ireland’s experienced showjumper, Shane Breen, riding his mare Haya to a clear round in a best time of 30.84 secs. The Irishman finished ahead of France’s Kevin Staut (31.12 secs), riding Dialou Blue PS, and Brazil’s Francisco José Mesquita Musa (31.60 secs) on Carte de Blue PS Marathon. Shane commented: “I am delighted with this result. Since Haya is quick and has a long stride, I felt this well-spread course layout would suit her. She has the heart of a lion and is super smart, super careful. I have to say that the facilities and canter track here are second-to-none. It’s a great venue, with perfect weather!” In the day’s final event – CSI5*, 1.50m fences – last year’s Grand Prix-winning pair again took first place: Germany’s Marcus Ehning on Stargold (63.52 secs) was followed by the placed athletes from the earlier class – Francisco José Mesquita Musa (63.67 secs), this time on Catch me Marathon, and Kevin Staut (64.24 secs), riding Chepetta. Marcus said: “My horse loves this arena! Today he made a very good start and we were able to build on that and go on to win. I’m very pleased. Stargold is an 11-year-old stallion with a strong personality and I’m so proud of him and his achievements.” Earlier, the day’s competition had begun with a remarkable Qatari 1-2-3 finish in the 2-star Showjumping class (CSI 2*) over 1.30m fences. In first place was local athlete Mohammed Saeed Haidan, riding his 15-year-old grey mare, Miss Chilli. Runners-up was Ghanim Nasser AlQadi, riding Quick Step, while third place went to Saeed Hamad S H Juma on Ambre de Beaufort. After his victory, Mohammed commented: “It feels great to win the first event – to stand on the podium and hear the Qatari national anthem. This mare is a very special horse, now that she has her confidence over the water jumps. That took time and patience in training, but the hard work has paid off. I’m very happy.” In the 1.45m jumping category (CSI 2* class), top honours went to Qatar’s Bassem Mohammed on his 12-year-old bay stallion, Asia – ahead of Saudi Arabia’s Kamal Abdullah Bahamdan, on Kwikly, and fellow Qatari, Faleh Suwaed Al Ajamai, riding Ghana. The winner, Bassem, spoke after the event: “This horse is a new ride for me, so I was pleased to do so well today. He’s a good horse – we really ‘clicked’ and he made my life easy. CHI AL SHAQAB is one of my favourite competitions, being at home in Doha. So, to win here means a lot to me.” In addition to the great sporting action, guests enjoyed a wide range of entertainments, including stilt-walkers, street performers and a supercar exhibition, as well as high-quality food and beverage options from the various restaurants and cafés present.

Team Qatar win AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup Championship title

Doha: Qatari National Team crowned winners of the AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup Championship for men and women - (Western Zone) title after (2-1) victory over Oman in the final of the championship hosted by the Qatar Volleyball Association (QVA) for three consecutive days at the beach courts at Al Gharafa Sports Club, and qualifies for the 2023 AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup. By winning on Thursday, the Qatari team qualified for the 2023 AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup which qualifies for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics Games along with the Omani team which finished in second place, while the Palestinian team finished in third place. The Qatari national team participated in the tournament with two teams: Qatar (A), consisting of the duo Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan, and Qatar (B), consisting of the duo Mahmoud Essam and Abdullah Nassim, Qatar also participated in the women's competition with two teams. Lebanese women team won the championship title after defeating Qatari team (2-0), while the Jordanian team finished third. QVA and the West Asian Volleyball Federation (QAVF) President, Ali bin Ghanem Al Kuwari, praised the Qatari team's victory and its qualification the 2023 AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup that qualifies for the next Olympic Games. Al Kuwari said to Qatar News Agency (QNA), the winning confirms the team's superiority and development and this title is an addition to the achievements of the team.

Top-seeds advance into quarterfinals

Doha- The tournament's top three seeds, Andrey Rublev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Daniil Medvedev, unsurprisingly, made it into the quarterfinals alongside two-time champion Andy Murray, while defending champion Roberto Bautista Agut was knocked out at the end of another electrifying day at the Khalifa International Tennis & Squash Complex yesterday.   Rublev, the 2020 champion, came back from a set down to beat in-form Tallon Griekspoor 1-6, 6-1, 7-6(6) in 1 hour, 52 minutes to set up a quarterfinal clash against Jiri Lehecka, who defeated Finn Emil Ruusuvuori 6-2, 7-6 (2). Lehecka is yet to drop a set so far after beating both Damir Dzumhur and Emil Ruusuvuori with second-set tiebreaks, and world No. 52 looks well capable of providing the upset in their encounter. Meanwhile, Auger-Aliassime advanced to the quarterfinals after defeating Jason Kubler 4-6, 6-1, and 6-4 in two hours and 16 minutes. With the victory, Auger-Aliassime avenged his 2022 Newport Open defeat by Kubler to make it 1-1 in their head-to-head count. Auger-Aliassime will next be up against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, the seventh-seed, who defeated Soonwoo Kwon 6-3, 6-2.   Medvedev, on the other hand, won in straight sets (6-4, 6-3) against Liam Broady to set up a next round clash with Christopher O'Connell, who sensationally knocked out defending champion Roberto Bautista Agut, the fifth-seed, 6-3, 6(5)-7, 4-6.   Andy Murray, the 2008 and 2009 champion, took another step towards making history as the first three-time winner in Doha after overcoming Alexander Zverev, the fourth-seed, 7-6(5), 2-6, 7-5, in a thriller that lasted more than three hours.   The three-time Grand Slam winner will next face Alexandre Muller, who staged a straight sets 6-2, 6-4 upset against eight-seed Botic Van De Zandschulp, in the quarterfinals.

Qatar to take on Oman in AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup final

Doha: The Qatari national beach volleyball team will face Omani team today, in the final match of the AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup Championship for men and women - (Western Zone) - which will be held at the beach courts at Al Gharafa Sports Club, and qualifies for the 2023 AVC Beach Volleyball Continental Cup. The Qatari team qualified for the final after yesterday's victory over its Palestinian counterpart at the opening of the tournament, 2-1, after Qatar (A) won over Palestine (A and B) and Qatar (B) lost to Palestine (B). The Qatari national team participated in the tournament with two teams: Qatar (A), consisting of the duo Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan, and Qatar (B), consisting of the duo Mahmoud Essam and Abdullah Nassim. The women's competition started today in which Qatar participate with two teams, the Qatari national team will start its campaign tomorrow against Lebanese team, who won today against Jordan with a score of 2-

Wejdan hopes to impress again at CHI Al Shaqab

Doha: Qatar’s Wejdan Majed al-Malki is the first Arab female to compete in the dressage category at an international five-star Grand Prix competition. Qatar’s Wejdan Majed al-Malki is the first Arab female to compete in the dressage category at an international five-star Grand Prix competition. Longines Arena at Al Shaqab will host the 10th edition of CHI Al Shaqab from today till Saturday. Longines Arena at Al Shaqab will host the 10th edition of CHI Al Shaqab from today till Saturday. Qatar’s Wejdan Majed al-Malki is the first Arab female to compete in the dressage category at an international five-star Grand Prix competition. Qatar’s Wejdan Majed al-Malki is the first Arab female to compete in the dressage category at an international five-star Grand Prix competition. Longines Arena at Al Shaqab will host the 10th edition of CHI Al Shaqab from today till Saturday. Longines Arena at Al Shaqab will host the 10th edition of CHI Al Shaqab from today till Saturday. Qatar’s Wejdan Majed al-Malki is the first Arab female to compete in the dressage category at an international five-star Grand Prix competition. Qatar’s Wejdan Majed al-Malki is the first Arab female to compete in the dressage category at an international five-star Grand Prix competition. After having finished sixth in her maiden Commercial Bank CHI Al Shaqab Presented by Longines last year, Qatar’s dressage trailblazer Wejdan Majed al-Malki is relishing the prospect of taking part in the prestigious five-star championship again, the 10th edition of which will be begin today at the Longines Arena at Al Shaqab. The 45-year-old created history in 2022, when she became the first Arab female rider to compete in the dressage category of the five-star Grand Prix. It was an impressive debut from Wejdan, who is now determined to push the bar higher against the best riders of the world. Wejdan will be in action on her 18-year-old purebred bay Spanish stallion Mango Jacaro with her event set to be held tomorrow and on Saturday. From dreaming of ponies as a girl, to becoming the first Qatari dressage rider in the sport’s history, Wejdan’s passion for horse was fuelled by her father, who believed in her potential from an early age. “It is a surreal experience to be here among some of the world’s best riders. It’s been my dream to compete in such events since I was quite young,” Wejdan said yesterday, ahead of three days of the equestrian carnival. “To take part at an international level and to be one of the first riders representing Qatar at this level is an honour and a privilege. However, it is also full of expectations and a lot of work is required, a lot of sacrifice, a lot of passion and a lot of determination are needed to be able to get here,” she added. Wejdan is hopeful she and her veteran partner Mango Jacaro can represent Qatar at the Olympics one day. “This is our second five-star participation and hopefully we will continue to take part in this event in future. We also hope to go to the Olympics one day, inshallah, and also maybe the World Championships,” she said. Dressage is one of the three Olympic equestrian sports, alongside eventing and showjumping. It involves demonstrating a horse’s training by performing a set of prescribed movements in front of a panel of judges. “Dressage is not an easy sport. A lot of people may not realise this. It’s elegant but it requires patience, commitment and dedication. You do a lot of different movements, and really, dressage is the perfection of these movements to the highest level of quality that you can achieve, Inshallah,” Wejdan said. Meanwhile, the today’s schedule at CHI Al Shaqab includes two-star and five-star showjumping events besides three-star para-dressage competition. Over 130 riders and more than 190 horses from 28 countries are competing for top honours in this year’s edition. While top riders from countries like Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands will be battling for titles, teams from Palestine and Lithuania will make their debut in the premier CHI event. Among the elite riders to watch out for at this year’s Chi Al Shaqab, will be last year’s showjumping Grand Prix winner Marcus Ehning from Germany. The field also includes Christian Ahlmann (2021 winner), Ludger Beerbaum (winner in 2014 and 2016), and Pieter Devos (2019 winner). The high-quality showjumping roster features four of the current top 10 riders in the FEI world rankings – Harrie Smolders (ranked 4), Marlon Modolo Zanotelli (ranked 7), Maikel van der Vleuten (ranked 8) and Kevin Staut (ranked 10). In the Dressage events, Sweden’s Patrik Kittel returns to Doha, after winning the Freestyle competition in 2020 and finishing as runner-up last year. The Para-Dressage competition welcomes new riders, as well as previous winners including Pepo Puch (Austria), Kevin van Ham (Belgium) and four-time champion, the Netherlands’ Rixt van der Horst. Rising stars who may catch your eye include Jeanne Sadran (France) and Jack Whitaker (Britain) in the showjumping, as well as Juan Matute (Spain) and Evelyn Eger (Germany) in the Dressage events.