Steiner and Essamlali Shine in CSI5 and Dressage at HH The Amir Sword Equestrian Festival

DONA - Nadja Peter Steiner delivered a standout performance to claim top honours in the feature CSI5* 150cm class as the HH The Amir’s Sword Showjumping Championship got underway at Al Shaqab on Wednesday.The Swiss rider, aboard Nice Van’T Zorgvliet, produced a flawless round to finish clear in 66.42 seconds and secure victory ahead of a strong field that featured 36 starters, with 13 combinations making the placings. American rider Kristen Vanderveen took second place with Bull Run’s Jireh after stopping the clock at 66.92 seconds, while Brazil’s Marlon Modolo Zanotelli completed the podium in third riding Dorette Old in 67.67 seconds.Zanotelli has earlier topped the standings in the CSI5* Two Phases 140cm class, guiding Merciminka to victory with a double-clear effort in 22.25 seconds from a competitive field of 70 participants. Vanderveen again featured prominently, finishing second aboard Starbucks 27 in 23.02 seconds, while Italy’s Emanuele Gaudiano secured third place with Vasco 118 in 23.32 seconds.Dressage action at the Longines Indoor Arena also drew attention, with Morocco’s Youssef Essamlali and Jazz Parra topping the CDN Preliminary Freestyle. USA’s Haajerah Khan riding Chantal M finished second, while Qatar’s Shaikha Al Thani claimed third place on Fenouil-F.M.In the juniors category, Qatar’s Hamad Nasser Al Marri aboard Sandro Girl secured victory in the CDN Preliminary Freestyle, followed by compatriots Hadi Nasser Al Hajri on Cordian Z and Moza Hamza Al Kuwari riding Lippo in second and third places respectively.The championship continues on Thursday with nine classes on the programme, including one-star and five-star competitions, three three-star World Cup qualifiers, a local 80cm class, an international dressage event for the St. George classification, and the Hermes Seller class, a 155cm Grand Prix qualifier featuring a jump-off.The HH The Amir’s Sword Championship forms the fifth stop of the Doha Equestrian Tour 2026, which began with the HH The Father Amir’s Prix. British world number one Scott Brash has dominated the tour’s Grand Prix standings so far, topping both the four-star and five-star overall rankings with 199 points, ahead of Harry Charles and France’s Meghann Moussonnier.In the one-star category, Qatari riders lead the standings with Saad Ahmed Al Saad in first place followed by Hussein Saeed Haidan. 

Swiatek, Rybakina made to dig deep to reach quarter-finals

Doha: Top seed Iga Swiatek and second-placed Elena Rybakina were made to fight hard after losing the first set to make the quarter-finals of Qatar TotalEnergies Open 2026 at the Khalifa International Tennis & Squash Complex on Wednesday.World number two Switaek recovered to beat Russian-born Australian Kasatkina 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 and set up a tie with Greece’s Maria Sakkari. Poland’s Swiatek is bidding to win her fourth title in Doha.Swiatek, who won the WTA 1000 tournament in 2022, 2023 and 2024, had breezed through her last six meetings with Kasatkina without dropping a set but blew a 5-3 lead to lose the opener.The six-time Grand Slam champion quickly regrouped, though, racing through the next two sets with six breaks of serve.“It wasn’t an easy match,” said Swiatek. “She used the slower surface here and she was going for it more compared to (our) last matches.“But you never know if it was her just doing that from the beginning, or me giving her more chances.“But for sure I felt like I could do sometimes more in the first set.”Swiatek remains on course for a possible rematch with Australian Open champion Rybakina in the final after the Kazakh’s win in their quarter-final clash at Melbourne Park last month.Rybakina also had to battle back to defeat China’s QinwenZheng 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 and end the former world number four’s first tournament of the year.Zheng, the 2024 Australian Open runner-up, was playing only her second event since undergoing elbow surgery last July but proved her fitness with three-set wins over Sofia Kenin and Alycia Parks in the previous two rounds.She produced an excellent first set, losing just four points on serve and taking it with a single break in the fifth game.But Rybakina was much improved in the second, breaking serve twice to force a decider.The world number three continued her momentum into the third set, racing into a 5-2 lead.Rybakina, without a WTA 1000 title since the 2023 Italian Open, missed a match point in the next game and was then broken while serving for the match.But Zheng faltered from 40-0 up when serving to push the set into a tie-break, allowing Rybakina to secure a Thursday quarter-final against Victoria Mboko with a rasping backhand.Canada’s Mboko won the battle of the teenagers by saving a match point to knock out fifth seed Mirra Andreeva in a deciding-set tie-break. Andreeva struggled to fight back tears as she left the court.The 19-year-old Mboko saved the match point on the Andreeva serve late in the third set before sealing a 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7/5) success.“I feel like I came out with some very clutch shots at the end,” said Mboko.“I think we both were pretty tired when it came to the tie-break. I think I felt like I was lucky enough to have some good shots in the great moments.”Earlier, Jelena Ostapenko, last year’s runner-up, saw off Colombian Camila Osorio 6-3, 6-1 to set up a last-eight tie with Elisabetta Cocciaretto.Italian lucky loser Cocciaretto backed up her second-round win over Coco Gauff by beating Ann Li 7-6 (7/5), 5-7, 6-4.Czech Karolina Muchova also reached the quarters when compatriot and former world number one Karolina Pliskova retired injured from their last-16 match when trailing 5-2 in the first set.Sakkari defeated France’s Varvara Gracheva 7-6 (7/3), 6-0 in the opening tie of the day.Anna Kalinskaya and Elina Svitolina were still playing their late match on centre court at the time of going to press. Kalinskaya had won the opening set 6-4.

Qatar football team to face Ireland in friendly on May 28

Doha: Qatar will face Ireland in an international friendly at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium on May 28 as part of Al Annabi’s preparations for the FIFA World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the USA, Canada and Mexico in June and July. Qatar have been drawn in Group B alongside Canada, Switzerland and one European playoff winner.In the latest FIFA rankings released in January, Qatar are ranked 56th, while Ireland sit 59th. The two sides have met twice before during the European qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. Their first meeting in Debrecen, Hungary, in March 2021 ended in a 1-1 draw, while the return fixture in Dublin saw Ireland claim a 4-0 victory.As part of their ongoing preparations, Al Annabi will also play friendlies against Argentina and Serbia during an international Qatar Football Festival in Doha from March 26 to 31, which will feature six World Cup-qualified teams. The Aviva Stadium, a multi-purpose venue with a capacity of 51,700, is the official home of the Ireland national team.

Rybakina, Swiatek roar ahead as Gauff falls by the wayside

Doha: Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina made a roaring start to her Qatar TotalEnergies Open 2026 campaign at the Khalifa International Tennis & Squash Complex on Tuesday as top-seeded Iga Swiatek also rolled ahead but Coco Gauff fell to Italian lucky loser Elisabetta Cocciaretto in the second round.Kazakh Rybakina, who is seed number two, showed flashes of dominance. After trailing 4-2 in the second set, the World No. 3 won the final four games to close out a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Wang Xinyu in 1 hour and 20 minutes.The result also marked a significant milestone for Rybakina: her 400th career match-win. Rybakina will next face another Chinese player in Zheng Qinwen.Polish Swiatek scored a comfortable straight-sets win over Indonesian wild card Janice Tjento reach the third round.Playing her first match since a quarter-final loss to eventual champion Rybakina at the Australian Open, Swiatek dominated the opening set, dropping just eight points in a 6-0 win.The second set was more competitive as Tjen displayed the form that has seen her rise from outside the top 400 at the start of the 2025 season to her current ranking of No. 46. After the players traded early breaks, Swiatek broke in the eighth game and held to close out a 6-0, 6-3 victory in 1 hour, 9 minutes.“It’s always nice to start a tournament in a solid way and I’m ready for every match,” Swiatek said when asked about this streak by the media in Doha.“I think that’s the reason for that. I don’t take anything for granted, so even first rounds or second rounds, I treat them as super important matches and as a challenge. So I’m ready for it from the beginning.”The six-time Grand Slam winner will play Daria Kasatkina for a place in the quarter-finals.She has won her last six meetings with the Russian-born Australian without dropping a set.Fourth seed Gauff was however out of sorts as she was beaten 6-4, 6-2 by Cocciaretto.American Gauff, who received a first-round bye, was also knocked out of the tournament in her opening match last year.Cocciaretto will face Ann Li in the next round after only the third victory of her career against a top-10 ranked opponent.The world number 57 said she was inspired by her friend and skier Sofia Goggia, who took bronze in the women’s downhill event at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics at the weekend.“We always send messages and FaceTime to talk about our sports and how you manage some things,” she said of Goggia. “She gives me a lot of advice...“I love how they (skiers) approach the sport. They have fear of nothing. They’re focused a lot and they put themselves after everything.”Also falling by the wayside were sixth seed Jasmine Paolini and eighth-seeded Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova.Former world number three Maria Sakkari saw off Paolini, also 6-4, 6-2, to set up a last-16 tie with Varvara Gracheva, who overcame Czech Linda Noskova 6-2, 2-6, 7-5.Former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko beat Alexandrova 6-4, 6-2.Australian Open semi-finalist Elina Svitolina and rising Canadian star Victoria Mboko also reached the last 16.In the late evening centre court match, Anna Kalinskaya prevailed over 12th seeded American Emma Navarro 7-5, 2-6, 6-2 to log her first second-round win in Doha and her first top-20 win of the season.“I am very happy to have won,” said the 27-year-old Kalinskaya. “It is the first time in four to five years here. It was very challenging but I managed to be be aggressive in the final set.”Kalinskaya meets Svitolina in the next round.

Strong Competition Marks Opening Day of Trap Event at HH the Amir Grand Prix Shotgun Championship

Doha: The Trap competition of the third edition of the HH the Amir Grand Prix Shotgun Championship got underway today at the Lusail Shooting Ranges and will conclude tomorrow, Thursday, with the participation of 315 male and female shooters representing 38 countries.A total of 198 shooters competed on the opening day of the Trap event across four categories: men, women, juniors, and youth.The day’s contests were intense and highly competitive, as shooters competed over three rounds totaling 75 targets, with 25 targets per round.In the men’s category, 110 shooters took part in the three rounds. Team Qatar’s Angelo Scalzoni topped the standings with 74 targets. The United States’ Brian Burrows placed second with the same score, while Egypt’s Ahmed Zaher finished third, also with 74 targets.In the women’s category, 34 shooters competed fiercely across the three rounds. Italy’s Alessia Iezzi led the standings with 72 targets, followed by Spain’s Fátima Gálvez in second place and Australia’s Laetisha Scanlan in third, both with 72 targets.In the juniors’ category, 23 shooters participated. Australia’s Lucas Bervlan secured first place with 70 targets, Kazakhstan’s Asil Khan Italbayev finished second with 69 targets, and Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Al-Sahli placed third with 68 targets.In the youth women’s category, 10 shooters competed. The United States’ Carmen Cunningham topped the standings with 67 targets, followed by Kazakhstan’s Aiylum Zhabagiyeva in second place with 65 targets, while her compatriot Milana Babshikina came third with 64 targets.

Philippine and Lebanese Schools Book Their Spots in the 2025–2026 Mini Basketball World Cup Final

DOHA  – The Philippine School and the Lebanese School have qualified for the final of the 2025–2026 Mini Basketball World Cup after securing impressive semifinal victories over GEMS American Academy and Universal Academy, respectively, at the Qatar Basketball Federation courts.The first semifinal began evenly in the opening quarter before the Philippine School gradually took control, overturning the balance of play and sealing a 69–53 victory to confirm its place in the final. In the second semifinal, the Lebanese School dominated from the outset, showcasing strong performances and excellent technical skills to claim a deserved 66–31 win and secure the other spot in the championship match. The third-place playoff between Universal Academy and GEMS American Academy is scheduled for Thursday morning at the Qatar Basketball Federation courts.The Lebanese School will face the Philippine School in the final on April 30 at Aspire Academy Arena, coinciding with the closing ceremony of the School Olympic Program season. Based on the final standings of the 2025–2026 season, each participating school in the second edition of the mini tournament (2026–2027) will have the opportunity to select the jersey of one of the national teams qualified for the FIBA Basketball World Cup Qatar 2027.Following the semifinal match, Mr. Arsenio Lacson, head coach of the Philippine School team, stated that his players delivered “an outstanding performance characterized by high skill and hard work,” noting that the team maintained determination and focus despite facing difficulties at certain stages of the game. He added, “Winning the final on April 30 is a dream for everyone, and we will do our utmost to achieve it. From a technical perspective, every player was a hero today, as their united efforts secured qualification for the final.”Meanwhile, Mr. Gaspard Ishak, head coach of the Lebanese School team, said that his team’s technical performance had been “consistent and strong from one match to another, reflecting the players’ discipline and commitment.” He added, “We have now reached the final, where we will face the Philippine School, and the better-performing team will claim the top spot on the podium. We also commend the excellent organization and professional management of the championship.”A total of 32 secondary schools from across Qatar took part  in the championship, competing under their official names: 1 - American Academy School, 2. Alpha Cambridge School, 3. Al Khor International School – British Curriculum, 4. Al Khor International School – CBSE, 5. Institute for Religious Studies Preparatory and Secondary School for Boys, 6. Al Andalus Private School, 7. Beverly Hills International School, 8. Beta Cambridge School, 9. Belgravia High School, 10. DPS Modern Indian School, 11. Edison Global Academy – Lusail, 12. GEMS American Academy – Qatar, 13. Global Academy  International – Al Waab Branch, 14. Global Academy  International – Muaither Branch, 15. Harvard American School, 16. Hassan Bin Thabit Independent Secondary School for Boys, 17. Ibn Taymiyyah Independent Secondary School for Boys, 18. The Jordanian School, 19. Lycée Français Bonaparte – Doha, 20. Loyola International School, 21. The Lebanese School, 22. The Ideal Indian School – Abu Hamour Branch, 23. Monarch International School (DPS), 24. Newton International Academy, 25. Philippine International School – Qatar, 26. Podar Pearl School, 27. Qatar-Finland International School, 28. Rajagiri Public School, 29. Stafford Sri Lankan School – Doha, 30. Cambridge School, 31. Next Generation Private School – Al Wakrah, and 32. Birla Public School.The Mini Basketball World Cup represents a pioneering initiative that combines both sporting and educational dimensions. It is being staged for the first time in the Middle East and North Africa under the supervision of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), in cooperation with the Qatar Basketball Federation and the Qatar School Sports Federation, using a modern competitive format inspired by the atmosphere of the upcoming FIBA Basketball World Cup Qatar 2027.The championship forms part of the Schools Olympic Program for the 2025–2026 and 2026–2027 seasons, reflecting an integrated vision that blends competitive excellence with educational values, contributes to building a sports-educated generation, and strengthens the role of sport as a bridge for human connection and friendship among nations.