Qatar’s Younousse-Tjan advance to knockout stage

​DOHA, March 11, 2020- Qatar's Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan scored a fine win over French qualifiers Quincy Aye and Arnaud Gauthier-Rat in their second Pool 'H' match to advance to the knockout round of the 4-Star Katara Beach Volleyball Open on Tuesday .The eighth-seeded Qatar pair lost their morning match to Ukrainian qualifiers Iaroslav Gordieiev and Sergiy Popov 21-17, 13-21, 10-15, but they came back strongly against Frenchmen to win 2-0 (21-16, 21-15) in evening at the Katara Village Amphitheatre Central Court.The other two Qatari teams - Mahmoud Ahmed Esham and Mahdi Badreddin Sammoud, Benlouaer Ziad and Saifeddine ElMajid - failed to make it to the next round as they finished fourth in their respective groups.Reigning world champions Oleg Stoyanovskiy and Viacheslav Krasilnikov hit their stride early as they won their both matches on the first day of the main draw.The Russian duo began with a 2-0 (21-14, 21-12) over Qatar's Benlouaer Ziad and Saifeddine ElMajid and then defeated Latvia's Aleksandrs Samoilovs and Janis Smedins 2-1 (16-21, 21-16, 15-11). Krasilnikov wrapped up the win over Samoilovs and Smedins with an ace after Stoyanovskiy had brought up the first match ball by dominating at the net.“It was a really tough game," Stoyanovskiy said. “They have changed their coach and play differently with more spikes on the second ball. That was a problem for us in the whole match, especially in the first set.“We found the key to overcome that and we put more pressure on their service to bring them away from the net and that was fruitful for us."Stoyanovskiy and Viacheslav enjoyed a stellar 2019 in which they won gold at the Hamburg 2019 FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships and ended the season by topping the podium at the Rome 2019 FIVB World Tour Finals.Since November they have been hard at work in Tenerife, Sri Lanka and the national training centre in Anapa on Russia's Black Sea coast as they set their sights on the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.“We are calmer now and we only focus on our game because we know we can beat any team in the world. We proved that last year and we are working to improve every facet of our game."Qatar's Esham and Sammoud lost their first Pool 'B' match to Rio Olympic bronze medallists Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen of the Netherlands 16-21, 18-21. In the second match also they were beaten by the Netherlands' Steven Van De Velde and Christian Varenhorst 14-21, 17-21.Former world champions Bruno Schmidt and Evandro Goncalves also enjoyed a brace of victories on the opening day of pool play. First off, they defeated Belgium's Dries Koekelkoren and Tom Van Walle 2-1 (12-21, 21-14, 15-9) and then rounded off their day's work by beating USA's Stafford Slick and William Allen 2-0 (21-15, 21-17).“Of course, two victories mean it is a good start, it is what everyone is trying to do," Bruno said. “The air here is so different to Brazil though. It is more humid there and the ball moves differently here, it floats more.“Then there is the wind which makes it change even more and affects the speed of the ball. It took us a while to adapt in the first match, but that is beach volleyball and you have to adapt. It is the first tournament of the year and everyone is working to adapt to the different conditions."The men-only tournament is running from March 9-13 at Katara Cultural Village. It is the second of nine 4-Star events on the 2019-2020 calendar and the winners will leave with 800 ranking points.

Qatar Men's ITF World Tennis Tour to begin on Sunday

Doha, March 8, 2020- The main round of Qatar Men's ITF World Tennis Tour will begin at the Khalifa Tennis and Squash Complex on Sunday. The tournament will feature the participation of 32 players in singles competitions and 16 teams in doubles event. The state of Qatar will be represented by Mousa Shanan, Nasser Al Yafei and Rashed Nawaf. The ITF Men's World Tennis Tour serves as the entry level for professional tennis and sits between the ITF Junior World Tennis Tour and the elite levels of men's professional tennis. ​

Team Qatar eye glory in ISSF World Cup Shotgun in Cyprus

DOHA, March 8, 2020 – Qatar's shooting team members are participating in the prestigious ISSF World Cup Shotgun 2020 , which taking place from 4-13 March in Nicosia, Cyprus.Elite and prominent Qatari shooters are representing the country in the prestigious event, including Nasser Al Attiyah, Abdulaziz Al Attiyah, Rashid Saleh, Ali Al Ishaq, Mohammed Al Romaihi, Nasser Al Homaidi, Mohammed Dablan, Saied Abo Shareb.The prestigious ISSF World Cup Shotgun 2020 is bringing together more than 280 shooters (Men and Women) from 40 countries.​

Xu Xin, Ma Long win men's doubles gold at ITTF Qatar Open

Doha, March 8, 2020-China's Ma Long and Xu Xin claimed the gold medal of men's doubles event at ITTF Qatar Open on Saturday. In the final they beat England's Paul Drinkhall and Liam Pitchford (11-8, 8-11, 11-1, 11-6), the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medallists.It was the first time an English pair had ever reached the final of a men's doubles event on either the ITTF World Tour or at an ITTF Challenge Series tournament.A fourth appearance in an ITTF World Tour women's doubles final and a second success as a pair; China's Wang Manyu and Zhu Yuling, the no.2 seeds, beat Japanese teenagers Miyuu Kihara and Miyu Nagasaki, the top seeds (11-4, 7-11, 11-8, 11-9) to arrest the title.Previously in 2018 Wang Manyu and Zhu Yuling had been runners up in the Korea Republic and in 2019 in China, before winning in the German city of Bremen.Meanwhile for Miyuu Kihara and Miyu Nagasaki the run came to an end; last October they had won in Austria prior to succeeding at the Grand Finals.Top seeds, Japan's Jun Mizutani and Mima Ito secured mixed doubles gold; in the final they beat China's Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha, the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games mixed team gold medallists. They won in four games (11-8, 7-11, 11-4, 15-13).It was their eighth ITTF World Tour mixed doubles final since joining forces in early July last year in the Korea Republic but it only their second title. In 2019 they won in Bulgaria, before being the runners up in the Czech Republic, Austria, Sweden, Germany and at the Grand Finals; earlier this year they were again the runners up, second place was their lot once more in Germany.Meanwhile for Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha it was their second appearance in an ITTF World Tour mixed doubles final; in 2018 they were the silver medallists in the Korea Republic.​

Jorge Campillo leads Commercial Bank Qatar Masters

Doha, March 8, 2020- Jorge Campillo continued his superb form and carded a third-round 67 to take a one-shot lead into the final day of the 2020 Commercial Bank Qatar Masters.The Spaniard started the day in a share of the lead and picked up five shots in six holes around the turn to move three ahead and into a commanding position at Education City Golf Club.But a pair of bogeys on the back nine in the increasing wind meant he came home in level par for a 14 under total, just one clear of Scot David Drysdale and Dane Jeff Winther.Drysdale was bogey free in a 64, while Winther also made seven birdies with a single dropped shot in a 65.Another Dane in Benjamin Poke was then at 12 under, a shot clear of Swede Alexander Björk and Spaniard Pablo Larrazabal.Drysdale is playing his 498th European Tour event this week as he looks for a maiden victory, while a win for Winther would come at the 97th attempt as he establishes himself fully on the European Tour after three successful trips to the Qualifying School.Campillo's first victory at last season's Trophée Hassan II came at the 229th time of asking as he secured five top fives in six starts, but he has had just one top ten since.Winther made a fast start, birdieing his first three holes to share the lead and keeping his place at the top of the leaderboard with a 30 footer on the fifth.After starting with four pars, Campillo holed from eight feet at the fifth to get back into a tie.A 15 footer on the seventh put Winther out in front but Campillo laid up and put his third to three feet at the par five sixth to get to 12 under.Winther found the water on the seventh to surrender a bogey and when Campillo made a third gain in a row on the seventh after a lovely approach, he led by two.A 40 foot putt at the ninth moved him three ahead and while Winther holed from 15 feet at the 11th to trim the lead, a Campillo chip-in at the tenth opened the lead back up to three.Campillo three putted the 12th but needed only two on the par five next to stay three ahead of a group of players that now included Drysdale.The 44-year-old birdied the first, second, fifth and sixth to turn in 32, and saw his eagle putt lip out as he made a birdie on the 13th.Another gain came on the next to put him in a share of second and he put his approach to the 17th to tap-in range to become the nearest challenger.Campillo three putted from just off the green at the 15th to see his lead cut to one and Winther holed a ten footer on the 17th to join Drysdale.Poke - who won the final stage at Qualifying School in convincing fashion - birdied the second, sixth and seventh but dropped a shot on the ninth before making gains on the tenth and 13th. A monster putt on the 15th and a 12 footer on the 17th had him within one but he failed to get up and down from the sand on the last.Larrazabal made two eagles and six birdies as he matched the lowest round of the week - and the fledgling course record - with a 63, while Björk made three birdies and a bogey in a 69.Finn Kalle Samooja and England's Jack Senior were at ten under, a shot clear of two more Englishmen in Marcus Armitage and Andy Sullivan, India's S.S.P. Chawrasia, Belgian Thomas Detry and Scotland's Scott Jamieson.​

HH Sheikha Moza Honors Winner of Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Doha

Doha, March 08, 2020- (QNA) - HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, honored on Saturday evening German rider Daniel Deusser, winner of the first position in the Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Doha, the first round of the 2020 Longines Global Champions Tour and the Global Champions League.The event was attended by a number of dignitaries in the State of Qatar and a large number of equestrian fans.Al Shaqab, a member of Qatar Foundation, organized the three-day competition in the Longines Arena at Al Shaqab with the participation of 50 riders from 15 countries.Daniel Deusser with Killer Queen VDM won the first place of the 1.60m-high Longines Grand Prix, Nicola Philippaerts of Belgium came in second place and Jerome Guery of Belgium finished third. (QNA)​