Sydney hosted the Games of the XXVII Olympiad from 15 September to 1 October 2000, the second Australian Olympics after Melbourne 1956 and widely regarded as one of the best-organised editions of the modern era. About 10,600 athletes from 199 delegations competed across 28 sports and 300 events.

The Games are remembered for Cathy Freeman's 400 metres victory before a home crowd and for the entry of North and South Korea together under a unified flag at the opening ceremony. New events including triathlon and taekwondo joined the programme. For Qatar, Sydney 2000 was a significant edition: a delegation of 17 athletes competed across athletics, weightlifting, shooting, table tennis and, for the first time, swimming.

The highlight came in the weightlifting hall, where Said Saif Asaad won bronze in the men's 105 kg category, securing Qatar's second Olympic medal, eight years after its first. Skeet shooter Nasser Al-Attiyah also recorded a strong sixth-place finish. Sydney marked a step forward in the breadth of Qatar's Olympic participation and confirmed weightlifting and shooting as promising medal disciplines for the nation in the years that followed.