Q Life Magazine Q Magazine (US) December 2015 | Page 53
Sports |
A World Hub For Sport
Since 2004, Qatar has been evolving into one of the
most important sporting destinations in the world.
By building world-class arenas and other sporting
facilities and increasing its visitor capacity, the country
has taken the lead in the Arab world in hosting major
international sporting events. This two-decade process
will come to a climax in 2022, when Qatar will host
the 22nd FIFA World Cup, the most watched and
attended sporting event in the world.
Selfie Earns Eight-
Year-Old and Family
Trip to Qatar
The process has been steady and incremental. In 2004,
Qatar hosted the Asian Handball Championship, as well
as table tennis and motor racing competitions. In 2006,
it held the Asian Games, and in 2010 it hosted 10
different competitions in sports, ranging from sailing
to tennis. In 2015, the country hosted three major
international competitions: the AIBA World Boxing
Championship, the International Paralympic Committee
Athletics World Championship, and the Men’s Handball
World Championship—its biggest event yet. Next year’s
World Cycling Championships will be even bigger.
At the same time, Qatar is developing its own athletic
programs and encouraging sports, health, and wellness
among its citizens. The country had a historic showing at
the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London, England,
doubling its historical medal count.
Much of this process is driven by His Highness Sheikh
Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the Amir of
Qatar, who is a great believer in sports as a unifying force
and an agent for change. HH the Amir is a member of
the International Olympic Committee and an advocate
of Qatar’s involvement in global sporting events.
“Sport occupies a privileged position in the national
agenda of the country’s leaders,” Sheikh Khalid
bin Ali Al-Thani said at the press conference for the
World Cycling Championships. “This priority extends
beyond sport for sport’s sake to the objective of bringing
people together.”
To enter the selfie competition—and get a chance win
a trip to Doha and six nights accommodation during
the World Cycling Championships in October 2016—
visit dohacycling2016.com/Page/selfie
Eight-year-old Noa Albridge loves taking
selfies. Now her passion will be taking her
and her parents on an all-expenses-paid
trip to Qatar to watch the World Cycling
Championships in October 2016.
Noa says she is “really excited” about
going there. She won the trip by being the
first person to enter a selfie contest held
in Richmond, Virginia at the 2015 World
Cycling Championships. Two other trips
are up for grabs in the contest.
“We are all excited to travel to Qatar
to experience the rich culture!” adds Noa’s
mom, Mercedes Castillo. “We have never
been so blessed and cannot wait until
next year!”
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