222 Team Qatar athletes on a mission to make the nation proud

DOHA, August 12, 2018- The 18th edition of the Asian Games will be held in the cities of Jakarta-Palembang from 18th August to 2nd September and will see 222 athletes proudly represent Team Qatar. Indonesia will be the first country to ever host the 2nd largest multi-sport event in two different cities.The Opening Ceremony will be held on the 18th August at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta. The 37th General Assembly of the Olympic Council of Asia will be held on 19th August at the Mulia Hotel Indonesia.Team Qatar will be represented by 20 National Sport Federations and will compete in 30 events and disciplines at the Asian Games 2018. Team Qatar will also compete in two new sports for the first time in Qatar's Asian Games history, including 3x3 basketball and air sports.Showing his support to Team Qatar at the Asian Games 2018, H.E. Secretary General of the QOC Mr. Jassim Al Buenain said “With the directions of HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani the QOC President, we are committed to always support our National Sports Federations in delivering the appropriate environment for our athletes to train and achieve excellence, as this is a key strategic goal for the QOC."“Qatar is a nation passionate about sport and we strongly believe in the power of sport to unite, inspire, empower and educate people of all ages and abilities. The 2006 Asian Games has been a catalyst for Qatar's sport development. Hosting the Games in Doha holds a special place in our hearts. Today we stand behind our athletes and confident that they will make us proud. We hope that their success will inspire young athletes in Qatar to follow in their footsteps and one day represents Team Qatar." Al Buenain added.The diverse and ambitious team includes 29 females who will take part in new and exciting sports, everything from shooting to taekwondo. Team Qatar forms a strong team with over 890 previous achievements from winning Olympic medals, to claiming Asian champion titles and are eager to return home with even more medals. Team Qatar will be led by His Excellency Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani the President of the Qatar Olympic Committee.On his medal prediction and hopes for Team Qatar, Al Buenain said, “It is with no doubt that our athletes at the Asian Games 2018 will be holding a huge responsibility to showcase the Qatari sport at its best. The Games act as a great opportunity for our athletes to shine and gain wonderful experiences. Wishing them all the best of luck at their competitions."Team Qatar athletes has received an outpouring of public support in response to a new 'I am Qatar' campaign recently launched across its digital platforms as part of the exciting build up to Asian Games 2018 Jakarta-Palembang. To celebrate Qatar's continued emergence onto the world stage of sport the inspirational 'I am Qatar' campaign was introduced by an energetic short film produced by Al Kass Sports Channels featuring some of the prominent Team Qatar athletes in different sports.Commenting on the remarkable response to the 'I am Qatar' campaign, Sheikha Asma Al Thani the Marketing and Communications Director at the QOC, said “We hope the 'I am Qatar' campaign brings everyone together to support our athletes at the 2018 Asian Games. Our athletes represent everything that Qatar stands for. We are extremely proud of them and we want them to feel the support of the entire community. When they compete in competition they compete for us all."Team Qatar competitions will begin with the handball team who are looking to defend their Asian Games 2014 title. The team will play against Malaysia in the preliminary round on Tuesday 13th August, 5 days ahead of the Opening Ceremony.Fans can follow Team Qatar's final preparations for the Asian Games 2018 on Team Qatar's social media channels and website. The 'I am Qatar' campaign film can also be viewed on the Team Qatar's social media channels and is available on the Qatar Olympic Committee YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/XjdH9xqmq7M

Qatar lose to Russia in Moscow 4-Star quarterfinals

​Moscow, August 12, 2018-Qatar's Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan suffered a 1-2 defeat at the hands of their Russian counterparts in the quarterfinals of the FIVB Beach World Tour Moscow 4-Star Tournament on Saturday.Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tajin qualified to the quarterfinals after beating Russia's Konstantin Semenov and Ilya Leshukov on Friday.The Qatari duo will head to Jakarta, Indonesia to participate in the 2018 Asian Games to be held from August 18 to September 02.

Qatar to take on South Korea in AVC Volleyball Cup quarterfinals

Taipei, August 11, 2018-The Qatari volleyball team will take on their South Korean counterparts in the quarterfinals of Asian Volleyball Cup on Saturday. Qatar led the standings of their Group C after beating Vietnam and Thailand respectively while South Korea finished Group A in the second place behind leaders Japan. Three more matches will be held on Saturday as Iran will take on Vietnam while Japan will shake hands with Australia. Moreover, Chinese Taipei will face Thailand.

Qatar beach volleyball team qualify to Moscow Open quarterfinals

Moscow, August 11, 2018 – Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tajin needed to ignore the cheers of the Moscow crowd to knock out Russia's Konstantin Semenov and Ilya Leshukov, and reach the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Moscow 4-Star quarterfinals on Friday. The Qatari's took on the Russians on one of the outside courts. The match attracted a fierce crowd who cheered on their compatriots, a team who won gold at the Mersin 3-Star earlier in the season. They maintained their focus though, but had to fight hard to win and they eventually prevailed 2-1 (21-18, 17-21, 19-17) when Ahmed scored the winning point. “It was a very tough game, in their home town and they had a full support and they took a lot of energy from the crowd," Ahmed said. “But we fought and really fought for it and at the end we made it through.“It was not easy. We knew it wouldn't be easy. They had a lot of motivation to win and it was a big match and like a final. It was like playing against the crowd as well, and we wanted to quieten the crowd down."The two 23-year-olds have been playing together for less than a year, and in that time they have won bronze on home sand at the Doha 4-Star Katara Open, and then claimed their first on the road when they finished the Vienna 5-Star with another bronze. “At the moment our level is very high and we are playing very well," Ahmed said. “I'm really happy with my partner and how we are performing. We are playing some good stuff at the moment and I hope we can continue like this."

Qatar swimmers line-up for Asian Games

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia, August 11, 2018 – Qatar's swimming team delegation continued its productive and intensive training program in Bratislava, Slovakia in preparation for the upcoming Asian Games will take place from August 18 to September 2.Qatar swimmers will begin their official campaign in the Asian Games on August 19 until August 24.Qatar's team in the asian games is represented by eight swimmers, Noah Abdulaziz Al Kholaifi, Yagoub Abdulaziz Al Kholaifi, Abdulqaziz Hassan Al Obaidely , Mosalem Abdullah Al Nabit, Hassan Abdulrhman Al Obeidan, Abdulrahman Hosham Mohammed, Yousef Hosham Mohammed and Faras Morad Al Saieedi.

Qatar riders qualify to Asian Games

BANGKOK, Thailand, August 10, 2018 – Qatar's horse riders, Ali Al Marri, Saieed Al Rashidi and Hassan Al Nuaimi confidently qualified to the 2018 Asian Games Jakarta after outstanding results at the Cross Country and Eventing held in Thailand on Thursday. Qatar's riders record packed with several international and regional titles including their gold medal in 2006 Asian Games Doha. In a pre-qualification release on Thursday , Mr. Hamad bin Abdulrahman Al Attiyiah, the President of Asian and Qatar Equestrian Federations confirmed that Qatar riders are capable to honor the country in Jakarta and hoist country's name higher in this Asian sport Arena.