Qatar Sport 21_COVER_FINAL.indd - Qatar Olympic Committee

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ingoodcompany... Businesses, large and small, gave their full backing to Qatar’s National Sport Day L ocal and international businesses put their collective might behind Qatar’s National Sport Day in February, creating a patchwork of action-packed events that could be emulated elsewhere in the Gulf and around the world. An initiative of His Highness the Heir Apparent of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, National Sport Day is a unique celebration of sport built around an official public holiday on the second Tuesday of February. It first took place in 2012. Qatar, in common with other Gulf states and nations around the world, is facing up to health issues among an increasingly sedentary population and the promotion of healthy living is a central tenet of national policy, delivered through the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) and supported by other government agencies. This year, the National Sport Day started with a VIP Walk in Doha with the participation of QOC Secretary General Sheikh “The response from our staff was bigger and better than last year.” Saoud and Australia’s five-time Olympic swimming champion Ian Thorpe. National Sport Day provides a blank canvas for government ministries and agencies and sports organisations to promote active lifestyles – and this year’s event was notable for the sheer number of companies which created special events for their employees and the public. Whether it was hotels organising running races for their staff or far bigger and more sophisticated events, businesses all over Qatar took part in the second edition. One of the biggest company-led events was Dolphin Energy’s Doha Dash, which took place at the Losail International Circuit, Doha’s world-class motor racing track. The event included 5km, 3km and 1km runs, as well as a 1km ladies’ walk. Organised by the international sports event and management agency, Professional Sports Group, it was supported by a number The Doha Dash gets underway on National Sport Day. 22 | Issue 21 | Qatar Sport
national sport day of leading businesses in Doha including title sponsors Dolphin Energy, platinum sponsors Vodafone Qatar and supporting partners Fitness First, Kellogg’s, Rayyan Water and W Doha. Each of the event sponsors joined forces to promote healthy living by providing a number of fun activities for the runners and spectators to enjoy, including an opportunity to run against Qatar’s fastest man and event ambassador Samuel Francis. There were also free health checks while official fitness partner Fitness First held pre-race warm up sessions before every race and live demonstrations throughout the day. The day went down well with young families and VIP guests alike. As Michael O’Neil, the British Ambassador to Doha, said after the event: “With high levels of participation and enthusiasm from everyone present. I can see it [the Doha Dash] growing as a significant annual event on the Doha sports calendar.” Away from the Lusail Track, National Sport Day made full use of Qatar’s world-class sporting infrastructure, including the Aspire Zone, where energy giant Shell teamed up with the Qatar Football Association (QFA) to break the world record for the largest ever set of five-a-side football matches played at once. The match, which lasted for 11 hours and 58 minutes, involved 523 players from across Qatar and beat the previous record of 464 players set at the youth academy of English football club Sheffield United in October 2012. The event came hard on the heels of the launch of “Koora Time”, a five-year sustainable initiative set up by the QFA and Shell Qatar designed to improve the health and wellbeing of Qatar’s youth through football – a private-public initiative that was announced just days before National Sport Day. Also making the National Sport Day the focal point of more concerted efforts to change lives, Qatar First Investment Bank (QFIB), organised a month-long corporate wellness programme for its employees. A professional fitness consultancy was engaged to develop a tailor-made wellness programme which featured a series of activities, including a weight-loss challenge, a weekly outdoor fitness activity and nutritional and health awareness seminar. “The concept of National Sport Day inspired us to develop our internal Corporate Wellness Programme,” said Emad Mansour, CEO, QFIB. “The aim of this month-long initiative was to encourage our employees to adopt a healthy lifestyle that combines a balanced diet and regular exercise.” Many other domestic companies rivaled the proactive efforts of the international companies based in Qatar. Ooredoo, the county’s leading telecoms company, hosted several events at the Museum of Islamic Art Park, including fun games for younger people such as Giant Bowling, Giant Baseball and a unique game of American football. Meanwhile, on the Corniche, Doha’s Hamad Medical Corporation partnered with the Qatar Development Bank to offer blood pressure and basic health check-ups and to distribute information about healthy and active lifestyles. Almuftah Group— one of the country’s most diverse and successful groups of companies – kept it simple by organising a “Walk for Health” event from the Corniche to Sheraton Sqaure for hundreds of its employees and their families. On top of the health and benefits, Almuftah Group Managing Director Ibrahim Almuftah said that engaging in sport was a great way to inspire camaraderie and goodwill among colleagues and families alike. The corporate roll call included a jointly-hosted sports event for employees and their families, organised by Qatar Petroleum (QP), ExxonMobil Qatar and Qatar Gas Transport Company. The state carrier Qatar Airways also put on a wide range of activities at the Al Jazeera Academy in Doha for 1,500 staff and their families, featuring competitions in football, tennis, volleyball, cricket and basketball. Echoing the sentiments of corporate citizens all over the country, Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer, Akbar Al Baker, summed up the Day. “This year, the response from our staff was bigger and better than last year’s celebrations,” he said. The bar for Qatar-based businesses has been set high for next year’s National Sport Day on February 11, 2014.
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Page 34 and 35: FOR THE RECORD: WHO’S MAKING HEAD
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