HH the Amir to open IAAF World Athletics Championships today

Doha, September 27, 2019-(QNA)- HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani will open the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019 on the Doha Corniche on Friday evening.The 17th edition of the IAAF World Athletics Championships is hosted by Qatar from September 27 to October 6. (QNA)

Team Qatar ready for Challenge at Doha World Athletics Championships

​DOHA, September 26, 2019- Qatar's 18-athlete squad for the upcoming IAAF World Athletics Championships boasts of Asian record holders in world high jump champion Mutaz Essa Barshim, 400m hurdler Abderrahman Samba, 100m & 200m sprinter Femi Ogunode, and the 4x400m Relay team. Qatar team also includes two women athletes.The meet begins at the majestic Khalifa International Stadium, Aspire Zone, on Friday, September 27th. The ten-day event will last till October 6 culminating with a midnight marathon at the spectacular Corniche.Barshim, the 2017 London worlds champion and the World Athlete of the Year, is back in action having suffered an unfortunate ankle injury last year. His best has been 2.27m twice this season while in Zurich he could clear only 2.20m in his last event before bowing out.So the second highest jumper in the history after Cuban legend Javier Sotomayor at 2.43m, Barshim's fitness and how he handles the situation, would be under focus during the Doha Worlds taking place in the Middle East region for the first time.Samba created a big stir last season and went on to become the second fastest one-lap hurdler along with American Rai Benjamin, sweeping everything in his sight. This season, he ran in 400m, 400m hurdles and 4x400m relay as a build up for the worlds, including his wins in the Asian meet and Shanghai Diamond League.But he has not raced against world champion Norwegian Karsten Warholm and American Banjamin, who are expected to be his main rivals in the Doha 2019. In the meantime, Warholm showcased his preparations and posted the second fastest time after the world record holder Kevin Young in the Zurich Diamond League in August.Ogunode, the current Asian record co-owner in 100m with Chinese Su Bigntian and 200m, will be using his experience to help the national 4x100m and 4x400m relay teams. The latter quarter is the reigning Asian record holder after winning the gold medal in the Asian Games in Jakarta last year.In Jakarta, the 4x400m foursome consisted of world 400m bronze medallist Abdalelah Haroun, who is also back after recovering from injury, Samba, Mohamed Nasir Abbas and Mohamed Mohamed.For the Doha worlds, Qatar retained only three of the team that won the Asian title here in April this year – Samba, Bassem Hemeida and Ashraf Hussen Osman. With arrival of Haroun and Ogonode, the Qatar team definitely looks much stronger than before.Young sprinter Owaab Barrow will run in 100m, besides assisting the 4x100m relay tam. Other members of the relay team are Yaqoob al Hasani, Mahamat Zakaria Khalid, Abdelaziz Mohamed, Femi Ogunode and 2018 Asian Games silver medallist Tosin Ogunode.Abdelaziz Mohamed will also line up in the men's 200m, while Abubaker Haydar Abdalla has been listed for 800m. Abdirahman Saeed Hassan and Yaser Salem Bagharab have been listed for the 1,500m and 3,000m steeplechase, respectively.Former under-20 world champion and 2018 Asian Games gold medallist Ashraf Amgad El Seify will represent the home team at the men's hammer throw.Doha 2019 bid ambassador Marim Farid and Kenza Sosse, the two female athletes, will run 400m hurdles and 400m, respectively.Qatar squad for IAAF Doha 2019 World's ATHLETE DISCIPLINE:Abbas, Mohamed Nasir 4x400 Metres RelayAbdalla, Abubaker Haydar 800 MetresAl Hasani, Yaqoob 4x100 Metres RelayBagharab, Yaser Salem 3,000 Metres SteeplechaseBarrow, Owaab 4x100 Metres Relay, 100 MetresBarshim, Mutaz Essa High JumpEl Seify, Ashraf Amgad Hammer ThrowFarid, Mariam Mamdouh (W) 400 Metres HurdlesHaroun, Abdalelah 400 Metres, 4x400 Metres RelayHassan, Abdirahman Saeed 1,500 MetresHemeida, Bassem 4x400 Metres RelayKhalid, Mahamat Zakaria 4x100 Metres RelayMohamed, Abdelaziz 4x100 Metres Relay, 200 MetresOgunode, Femi 4x100 Metres Relay, 4x400 Metres RelayOgunode, Tosin 4x100 Metres RelayOsman, Ashraf Hussen 4x400 Metres RelaySamba, Abderrahman 400 Metres Hurdles, 400M, 4x400 Metres RelaySosse, Kenza (W) 400 Metres.

Beach handball sets to take centerstage at ANOC World Beach Games

​Doha, September 26, 2019-Despite being one of the “new comers" to the world stage, beach handball is rapidly gaining traction globally and the sport will be one of the major centerpieces as the maiden edition of the ANOC World Beach Games, also known as Qatar 2019, kicks off on October 12 in Doha.Beach handball, whose first major international competition, the Beach Handball World Championships, was held as recent as 2004, is one of the major team sports of Qatar 2019.At the draw ceremony held in August, hosts Qatar were drawn in Group B of the men's competition, alongside Croatia, Hungary, Spain, Uruguay and Tunisia while Group A threw up Brazil, Sweden, Denmark, Oman, United States and Australia as contestants. For the women's event, the draw placed Brazil, Denmark, Hungary, Argentina, USA and Tunisia in Group A, while Group B comprises Greece, Spain, Poland, China, Australia and Vietnam.Beach handball, which made its first Olympic appearance at the Buenos Aires 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games, traces its history back to a small island in Ponza in the southern Italian region where it began to emerge as an interesting sport on the beaches of the region towards the end of the 1980s. The Italian coach Simonetta Montagni was the first to begin developing handball on the beach at about the same time as the players in the Netherlands began experimenting with the new trend sport.Egypt emerged the first world champions of the sport after defeating Turkey 2-1 on home-soil at the inaugural edition of the World Championships staged in El Gouna in 2004.The first European Championships was held in Gaeta, Italy in 2000 with Belarus emerging the winner after defeating Spain 2-1 in the final.In Asia, the sport made its maiden appearance on the continental level at the 2008 Asian Beach Games in Bali where the men's event was won by Pakistan, with Kuwait and Thailand taking the silver and bronze medals respectively. For the women's event, China nicked the gold while silver and bronze went to Thailand and Chinese Taipei respectively.Just like the conventional handball, beach handball is a team sport where two teams pass and bounce or roll a ball, trying to throw it in the goal of the opposing team but it is played on sand instead of in a sports hall, and because the ball loses most of its bounce on sand, there is little to no dribbling, and players instead perform more passing as the rule of traveling still applies.During regular play, if the goalkeeper scores a goal this counts as two points, compared to a normal goal scored by an outfield player which counts as 1 point. Creative or spectacular goals, such as 360 degree jumps and alley-oops, are awarded with two points, as well as in-flights and 6 meter throws.For Team Qatar, the horizon looks good for the men's team, and Qatar 2019 is yet another opportunity for them to once again prove their mettle as the undisputed “Kings of Asia" having being the dominant force in Asia and one of the top teams in the world.The team have finished third twice at the IHF World Men's Beach Handball Championship (2014 World Beach Championships in Brazil and the 2016 World Beach Championships in Hungary). The team also finished third at the 2017 World Games held in Wrocław, Poland.In Asia, the team have won the Asian Men's Beach Handball Championship a record five times.The Qatari beach handball team clinched the first of their series of trophies at the Championships with the defeat of host country Oman in 2011 at the Muscat tournament.They again defeated now familiar foe Oman at the Hong Kong tournament in 2013 to lift their second trophy before repeating same feat against the same opponent in 2015, 2017 and 2019 at tournaments hosted by Muscat, Pattaya (Indonesia) and Weihai (China) respectively.Since 2012, the team have remained the champions of the Asian Beach Games having won the event three times in a row - 2012 in Haiyang (China), 2014 in Phuket (Thailand) and 2016 in Danang (Vietnam).Commenting on the team, Qatar Handball Federation President Ahmed al-Shaabi said, “What our beach handball team have achieved, especially in Asia, is unprecedented. We are very proud of their past achievements and we are at the same time very confident of their performances at the ANOC World Beach Games. We are giving the team the maximum supports and we believe they will make our country proud at the historical event."Beach handball is one of the 14 sports featuring at the ANOC World Beach Games to be held from October 12 to 16 in Doha. All matches of the sport will be played at the Al Gharafa Stadium.

QWSC organizes Qatar National Ice Hockey Skills Challenge

DOHA,25 September 2019 – The Qatar Winter Sports Committee (QWSC) organized Qatar National Ice Hockey Skills Challenge, which serves as a qualification for 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games , at Villaggio Arena in Doha last Week.The event brought together eight players, only one of them will qualify to the third Winter Youth Olympic Games which will take place from 9-22 January, 2020 in Switzerland's city of Lausanne.The QWSC Secretary General Hassan Hassam Al Hababi appreciated the event that being organised according to the criteria of International Ice Hockey Federation.

Team Qatar claim two medals in Asian Shotgun Championships

Almaty, September 25, 2019-Qatar's Rashid Saleh Al Athba claimed the bronze medal of Men's Skeet event at the 9th Asian Shotgun Championships began in Almaty, Kazakhstan on September 20.In team event, Qatar's Rashid Saleh Al Athba, Masoud Saleh Al Athba and Abdulaziz Sahel Al Attiyah took the silver medal when they settled in the second place behind China while Kuwait finished third.Team Qatar's participation in the event comes in light of their preparation program for the 14th Asian Shooting Championships to be held in Doha in November 2019.

Fares Ebrahim wins two silver medals in World Weightlifting Championships

Pattaya, September 25, 2019- Qatar's Fares Ebrahim claimed two silver medals in a gripping men's 96 kilograms event at the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) World Championships on Tuesday. The event is held in Pattaya, Thailand from September 12-27, 2019 with participation of 107 athletes from 75 countries. Ebrahim took his first silver medal in Clean and Jerk event when he cleared 224 kg to finish second behind China's China's Tian Tao. Ebrahim clinched his second silver medal in Total with 402 kg after clearing 178 kg in Snatch event. Iran's Mousaavi Jarahi claimed the bronze medal of clean and jerk event with 216 kg while Georgia's Anton Pliesnoi took the bronze of total with 394kg.