Qatar to face Afghanistan in 2022 World Cup and 2023 AFC Asian Cup joint qualifiers

DOHA, November 17, 2019 – Qatar's national football team will leave Doha on Sunday to Tajikistan capital city of Dushanbe to take on Afghanistan in the sixth round match of Group E of the 2022 World Cup and 2023 AFC Asian Cup joint qualifying match in Dushanbe on November 19.Team Qatar lead their respective group with 10 points ahead of Oman team who stay in the second place (9 points) , Afghanistan third ( 4 points), India fourth ( 3 points) and Bangladesh at the bottom of the group ( 1 point).Qatar have played four matches and won three – they have beaten Afghanistan 6-0, Bangladesh 2-0 and Oman 2-1 while playing out a goalless draw against India – to lead Group E with 10 points.​

Team Qatar to participate in GCC Tennis Championship

Manama, November 18, 2019-Qatar's junior tennis team will participate in the GCC Tennis Championship Under 14 & 18 years being held in Manama, Bahrain until November 21.As per the draw, the Qatari junior team under 14 years will take on Bahrain on Monday in the beginning of their campaign at the event then they will face Oman on Tuesday.Ahmed Al Obaidli chairs Qatar's delegation to the event as the state of Qatar is represented by 4 players including Nasser Al Yafei, Ali Saadi, Meshaal Al Khenji and Sultan Al Malki.It worth mentioning that team Qatar players have participated in two Asian Juniors Championships held in Doha last two weeks ahead of GCC Championship.

Tarek Momen crowned World Squash Champion

Doha, November 16, 2019- Egypt's World No.3 Tarek Momen put in a sublime display as he overcame New Zealand's Paul Coll by a 3-0 margin earlier today in Doha, Qatar to be crowned the 2019-20 PSA Men's World Champion – meaning Momen and wife Raneem El Welily have become the first married couple in squash history to become World Champions.Momen was appearing in back-to-back World Championship finals after falling to World No.1 Ali Farag in Chicago eight months ago and had finished as runner-up in all three of the major finals he had appeared in prior to today.But a masterclass of attacking squash saw him draw World No.5 Coll into the front of the court time and time again to power into a two-game lead to put him on the verge of matching El Welily, who won the women's World Championship in 2017.Coll, who was the first male Kiwi since Ross Norman in 1986 to appear in a final, returned to court in the third game with strapping on his right quad as a brutal week – which saw him spend almost an hour more on court than Momen throughout the tournament – looked to take its toll.There was no stopping Momen in the third game as he closed out the win by an 11-8, 11-3, 11-4 scoreline to lift the biggest prize in men's squash just two weeks to the day since El Welily fell to World No.4 Nour El Sherbini in the final of the women's World Championship, held in front of Cairo's Great Pyramid of Giza.“If I tell you how many times I imagined making this speech my whole life, it's countless, and now I just don't know what to say, it's so hard to digest," said Momen after winning his 7th PSA Tour title.“I just worked so hard for this. For years, I've been trying and trying, I came up this close but then it didn't happen for me. I haven't won a Platinum event and the first major I ever win gets to be the World Championship, it's unbelievable.“It has been a childhood dream of mine to become the World Champion at some point. I am 31 now, and I was wondering whether I would have the opportunity to do it, so to be able to do it at this age and to still feel that I can give it my all for a few more years is just unbelievable."“I want to congratulate Paul on such an event and an amazing achievement. He's done so well making it this far. He had the better of our last finals appearances, I'm just glad I managed to get this one."“It was such a strong match, I know he pushed himself hard during the event. Towards the end, I could see he was struggling a bit, but he kept pushing. I only realised this morning we were the only married couple to become World Champions. We are privileged to have achieved something, and I'm so happy we did it."For his part, Coll said: “It was tough from the word go, Tarek was firing and made me do a lot of work at all stages of the game. It was taking its toll because of his accuracy.“I'm very proud of my week, a bit disappointed by tonight but all credit to Tarek who delivered on the big stage tonight. I'm so grateful from all the support I got from back home, people waking up at early hours in the morning, it means a lot to me, and I want to thank them."Momen – who takes home over $45,000 in winnings – becomes the 18th man to get his hands on the iconic trophy, while he is the fourth Egyptian in a row to win the men's World Championship.He also qualifies for the season-ending PSA World Tour Finals which will take place in June and pits together the reigning World Champions and PSA Platinum title winners, with the remaining spots going to the highest-placed players on the Road to Egypt Standings, with points on offer at all PSA World Tour events.​

Sheikh Joaan Participates in Diabetes Walkathon

Doha, November 16, 2019- (QNA) - HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al -Thani, President of the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) has participated in Annual Diabetes Walkathona at the Oxygen Park, Education City, organized by the Qatar Diabetes Association to commemorate the World Diabetes Day.The event was also attended by HE the Secretary General of the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) Jassim bin Rashid Al Buenain, the Executive Director of the Qatar Diabetes Association Dr. Abdullah Al Hamaq and Professor Abdul Badi Abou Samra, Co-Chair of the National Diabetes Strategy, as well as participants from various parts of the country.More than 8,000 people participated in the march to raise awareness of diabetes. The event featured a range of activities and programs aimed at awareness and prevention of diabetes.World Diabetes Day is the world's largest awareness campaign. The International Diabetes Federation celebrates this day on November 14 each year, with the participation of more than 200 societies around the world, including the Qatar Diabetes Association.Global statistics indicate that more than one million children and adolescents worldwide are diabetic, of whom about 176,000 are in the Middle East and North Africa, and that every eight seconds the disease kills one. (QNA)​

Two Qatari players qualify to Semifinals of Qatar Asian Junior Championship

Doha, November 15, 2019-Qatar's Rashed Nawaf and Meshari Nayef qualified to the semifinals of Qatar Asian Junior Championship organized by the Qatar Tennis, Squash and Badminton Federation in cooperation with Asian Tennis Federation at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex with participation of 60 players.Qatar's Rashed Nawaf reached the semifinals after making easy win over his Kuwait counterpart Mohamed Yaqoub 6-0 6-0, while Meshari Nayef defeated Zaid Al Mashni of Jordan 6-1 6-2.It worth mentioning that Qatar's Rashed Nawaf claimed the title of ITF Asia 14 & Under Closed Championships held last week.​

Momen to take on Coll in World Championship final

DOHA, November 15, 2019-Second-seed Tarek Momen will take on fourth-seed and World No. 5 Paul Coll in the final match of Men's World Squash Championships on Friday. Momen made it into the World Championship final for a second successive season with the 3-1 (9-11, 11-7, 11-6, 11-6) semi-final victory over Germany's Simon Rosner at the Khalifa International Tennis & Squash Complex in Doha on Thursday."I'm happy to have reached the final of the World Championship for the second time. It is a dream come true and also the result of several months of hardwork. I played against a very strong opponent in Rosner and I must admit that he gave me a very hard time especially in the first and second game. Now that I'm in the final, the dream is to finally lift the trophy and have my name etched in the annals of history. I look forward to what tomorrow holds," he said.Paul Coll, against all odds, prevented what could have been another all-Egyptian final at the World Championship as he once again showcased relentless burst of energy in his defeat of Marwan ElShorbagy to book a place in the final of the $335,000 total prize money tournament which ends on Friday.The 27-year-old New Zealander triumphed 3-2 (9-11, 11-9, 8-11, 11-6, 11-7) after yet another grueling match that lasted the whole of 84 minutes inside the glass court of the Khalifa International Tennis & Squash Complex in Doha.Of all the four players in action on Thursday, Coll was expected to be the more fatigued of the lot considering the arduous task he faced getting to this stage especially after coming through a brutal 119-minute epic match against 2015 runner-up Omar Mosaad in their pre-quarters clash on Tuesday.The New Zealander, however, once again shrugged off any inkling of tiredness as he staged a comeback twice to force the game into a tie-breaker where he eventually triumphed against the World No. 10 Marwan, the younger of the ElShorbagy brothers. Marwan had ensured that the hope of his brother, the World No.2 Mohamed, getting a World Championship title in Doha remains a dream, despite appearing in the final twice in Doha, as he stopped him in the quarters on Wednesday.“The match was tough but what kept me going was the belief I had in my game. I remained composed under pressure and it shows in the end. Now that I'm in the final, my next aim is to win of course and I'm determined to give it all it takes. I intend to attain the World No.1 and tomorrow's match is another step in that direction but for now, I'm going to relish the fact that I'm in the final," Coll said.