Fares Ibrahim wins Qatar's first Olympic gold medal

Tokyo: Qatar's Fares Ibrahim made history winning the country’s first Olympic gold medal in weightlifting competitions on Saturday. Fares Ibrahim put up 177kg in the snatch before sliding into the clean and jerk and setting an Olympic record in that lift with a weight of 225kg. Venezuela's Keydomar Vallenilla Sanchez took the silver medal while Georgia's Anton Pliesnoi clinched the bronze medal. I’m very proud, I’m over the moon after winning this gold medal at Tokyo Olympics,” said Fares. “I hope that my performance was all right during these Games.” "I'm so happy that HH the Amir has called me, as his call is a new motivation will push me ahead for greater achievements in the upcoming events." He added. Fares also dedicated this achievement to Qatari people and to all fans and those helped him to bring this glorious gold medal. The QOC Secretary General H.E. Jassim bin Rashid Al-Buenain congratulated the HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, the Qatari government and   H.E. QOC President Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al-Thani on the outstanding achievement of team Qatar star Fares Ibrahim who claimed the Men’s weightlifting 96kg gold medal at Tokyo Olympics on Saturday. Al-Buenain said that this historic gold medal and the new Olympic record that were secured by our rising star Fares Ibrahim is an outcome of a significant work done by the Qatar Weightlifting and Fencing Federation in compliance with the QOC strategy. From his part, the President of the Qatar the Weightlifting and Fencing President. Mohamed Yousef Al Mana dedicated Fares Ibrahim’s gold medal to HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, H.E. QOC President Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani and to the Qatari people.

Sheikh Joaan meets Chairman of Japan-Qatar Friendship Association

Tokyo: H.E. President of the Qatar Olympic Committee Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al-Thani met today in Tokyo with H.E. Chairman of the Japan-Qatar Friendship Association Katsuno Satoru and the members of the Association on the sidelines of Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games. The meeting reviewed aspects of sports cooperation and ways to support and develop them. The meeting was attended by H.E. Secretary General of the Qatar Olympic Committee Jassim bin Rashid Al Buenain and H.E. Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Japan Hassan bin Mohammed Al Emadi.

Barshim qualifies for High Jump final

Tokyo: Qatar's two-time world champion Mutaz Barshim lived up to the high expectations and qualified for the final of Men's High Jump event at Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games. In the qualifications held at the Olympic Stadium on Friday, Barshim cleared 2.28m to secure his spot in the finals to be staged on Sunday. A bronze medallist in 2012 and silver medallist in 2016, the 30-year-old Barshim is seeking to win Qatar’s first ever Olympic gold.  “I’ve been waiting for five years for this,” Barshim said. “It’s the one I want, and I’ll do what it takes to make it happen." He added. For his part, Qatar's 400m hurdler Abderrahman Samba qualified for the semifinals. Samba won the first heat of Round 1 with a time of 48.38 seconds on Friday. Brazil’s Alison dos Santos finished second ahead of Algeria’s Abdelmalik Lahoulou and Jamaica’s Kemar Mowatt in the fourth place. The semifinals will be held on Sunday, with the final showdown taking place two days later. Bashayer Al Manwari took the sixth place in Heat 1 of Women's 100m Preliminary Round on Friday to celebrate her first appearance at the Olympic Games with a new personal best of 13.12 seconds Tala Abujbara won her E final in 8:00:22 minutes to finish overall 25th. In her final race held at the Sea Forest Waterway, Tala led the standings ahead of Uganda’s Kathleen Grace Noble and Nicaragua’s Evidelia Gonzalez. Qatar’s sprinter Femi Ogunode will begin his quest in Men's 100m event on Saturday. Ogunode confirmed that he is ready for the Olympics by winning the gold medals of 100m and 200m events event at 2021 Arab Athletics Championships last June. Ogunode made history when he was selected by the Association of National Olympic Committees in 2015 as the best male athlete in Asia. He also claimed the gold medal of 100m and 200m events at 2014 Incheon Asian Games. The middle-distance runner Abubaker Haydar will participate in Men's 800m heats on Saturday.  Haydar secured his spot in 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games after finishing 4th in the 800m event in at Doha Diamond League 2019. Fares Ibrahim Hassouna will be keen to prove a point when he begins his campaign in Men's 96kg event on Saturday.  Hassouna booked his ticket to Tokyo 2020 Olympics when he bagged two gold medals at 2019 Qatar International Cup Weightlifting Championships. On the other hand, Qatar’s Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan put on another convincing performance to score an emphatic victory over USA’s Jake Gibb and Tri Bourne on Friday in the duel for the top of Pool C, as both teams had already secured their spots among the best 16. Younousse and Tijan began their Olympic campaign with a 21-17, 21-16 victory over Adrian Heidrich and Mirco Gerson of Switzerland on Sunday then they edged past Italy’s Adrian Carambula and Enrico Rossi on Wednesday.

Sheikh Joaan attends Qatar's match against Italy in Men’s Olympic Beach Volleyball Tournament

Tokyo-Qatar's Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan secured their spot in the knockout stages of the men’s Olympic beach volleyball tournament after their second victory on Wednesday. Team Qatar duo scored a 2-0 (24-22, 21-13) win over Italy’s Adrian Carambula and Enrico Rossi in the Pool C match at the Shiokaze Park. The match was attended by H.E. President of the Qatar Olympic Committee Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al-Thani, H.E. President of Kuwait Olympic Committee Sheikh Fahad Nasser Al-Sabah, H.E. Secretary General of the Qatar Olympic Committee Jassim bin Rashid Al-Buenain and President of the Qatar Volleyball Association Ali Ghanim Al-Kuwari.

Athletics stars carry Qatar's hopes

Tokyo - Qatar’s hopes of winning an Olympic medal in Tokyo 2020 Olympics will rest on its athletics stars who will begin their campaign in the games on Friday. After winning the bronze medal in London 2012 Olympics and the silver medal in Rio 2016 Olympics, Qatar's High Jumper Mutaz Barshim has his sight now set on winning the gold medal in Tokyo 2020 Olympics. The two-time world champion will participate in Men's High Jump qualifications to begin at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on Friday. Barshim has scaled 2.40m 11 times since 2013 – only world record holder Javier Sotomayor, with 17, has more successful clearances at that formidable barrier – and with a 2.43m personal best, is the second-highest jumper of all time. The other Qatari medal contender Abderrahman Samba will be action on Friday.  The 25-year-old Qatari middle-distance runner will begin his challenge in Men's 400m heats at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo. A slight injury slowed him in 2019 but he regrouped enough to take the bronze on home soil at the World Championships. Samba qualified for Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics Games after winning the 400 hurdles gold medal in the Shanghai Diamond League meeting 2019 with a world-leading time of 47.27 seconds and will arrive in Tokyo with a 48.26 season's best. For her part, Bashayer al-Mnawari will face a stern test when she participates in Women's 100m heats on Friday. On the other hand, Qatar’s rower Tala Abujbara will participate in Final E race of women’s singles sculls event on Friday to conclude her historic appearance in Tokyo Olympics. After securing their spots in the knockout stages of the men’s Olympic beach volleyball tournament, Qatar’s Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan will take on Jacob Gibb and Tri Bourne of USA at the Shiokaze Park on Friday Cherif and Ahmed began their Olympic campaign with a 21-17, 21-16 victory over Adrian Heidrich and Mirco Gerson of Switzerland on Sunday then they edged past Italy’s Adrian Carambula and Enrico Rossi on Wednesday For his part, Qatar's Mohamed Al Rumaihi finished the Men's trap shooting qualifying rounds in the 13th place with 121 points, just one point behind the last qualifier to the finals.

Qatar Beach Volleyball duo score second win at Tokyo Olympics

Tokyo: Qatar's Beach Volleyball duo of Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan defeated Italy’s Adrian Carambula and Enrico Rossi 24-22, 21-13 at the Shiokaze Park on Wednesday. With this victory, Qatar’s Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan secured their spots in the knockout stages of the men’s Olympic beach volleyball tournament. The new men’s FIVB World Ranking leaders, Cherif and Ahmed began their Olympic campaign with a 21-17, 21-16 victory over Adrian Heidrich and Mirco Gerson of Switzerland on Sunday To finish on top of the pool, the Qatari pair will have to overcome Jacob Gibb and Tri Bourne of USA on Friday. For his part, Qatar's Mohamed Al Rumaihi finished the first day of the Men's trap shooting qualifying rounds in the 16th place with 72 points. The top six qualify for the final with the field being led by Kuwait’s Abdulrahman Al Faihan with 74 points. The last two qualifying rounds to will be held on Thursday. On the other hand, Team Qatar athletics stars arrived in the Olympic Village in Tokyo on Wednesday after their training camp in Takasaki, Japan. Qatar's athletics squad is spearheaded by Mutaz Barshim and Abderrahman Samba. The team also includes Femi Ogunode, Ashraf El Saifi, Abubaker Hayder, Musab Adam, Abdulrhaman Saieed and Bashayer al-Mnawari. In a brief statement on Wednesday, Qatar’s middle-distance runner, Abderrahman Samba  who will compete in the  men’s 400m hurdles said:”  I will fight tooth and nail to honour the country in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics”. “Nothing is easy in these games, but I will put all efforts to run faster, turn my dream into reality and  step up the Olympic podium”. he added Hours away from the kick-off of  athletics competition, Mohammed Essa Al Fadalah, Assistant Secretary General of Qatar Athletics Federation has confirmed that the training camp of team Qatar’s athletes at the Japanese city of Takasaki went with the plan and kept the athletes perfectly ready to fight for the best results. “Despite the tough restrictions being imposed against the pandemic to keep the athletes safe and protected, our athletes are fully satisfied with the outcome  they have from Takasaki camp” added Al Fadalah. On other hand, Qatar’s former sprinter and Athletics Federation’s Assistant Secretary General Talal Mansour has appreciated the standard of Qatar athletes preparations for the competition.  “This training camp met the standards of the plan set up by the federation and we are hopeful that will pay off and push up the Qatar’s athletics to new heights of success”.