EYES ON CHINA GOLD - Qatar Olympic Committee

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o o o o o o o o o beijing 2008 “we expect to have a team of 27 athletes competing in six different sports AT beijing 2008” has gone into making the Road to Beijing as smooth as possible can be found in the massive free-standing calendar which stands outside Khalil Al Jabber’s offices on the 20th floor of the Olympic Tower in Doha. This is the time-line writ large, a clear indication of the tasks to be completed each day as the countdown to Beijing continues. Next to it are diagrams of the accommodation which will be found in the Olympic Village, introducing the athletes to the realities of Olympic life well before they step onto the ‘plane to China. Khalil Al Jabber is determined that he and his delegation will be ready and absolutely nothing is being left to chance. Months before the Games, the Chef de Mission had accompanied federation chiefs and other officials on fact finding visits to Beijing in order to familiarise themselves with the facilities and conditions they will face when the team arrives from its training camp in Hong Kong a few days before the official opening of what it still generally agreed to be The Greatest Show On Earth. The Qatar delegation will consist of competitors, coaches, medical staff and officials, some of whom will stay in the Olympic Village. “We are expecting to have a team of 27 athletes in six different sports in Beijing,” explained Khalil Al Jabber. “We will be represented in track and field, shooting, fencing, weightlifting, swimming and taekwondo and while it is difficult to predict the outcome of events we will certainly be looking for progress in every area,” he said. Qatar’s strength in shooting disciplines has been well established over the years and with Nasser Saleh Al-Attiya taking fifth place in the 2000 Sydney Games and fourth in Athens four years ago, there are strong hopes that further improvement will result in a medal for Qatar. Likewise in weightlifting where Jaber Saeed Salem won the Bronze medal in Athens, there are high hopes, if not expectations, of an even better placing this time around. Elsewhere the team will have young competitors taking place in their very first Olympic Games in both the 100m breast stroke swimming event and in fencing, while in Taekwando, Abdulqader Hikmat Sarham will be looking to build on the success enjoyed in wining Gold at the 13th Asian Games in Doha. “Every member of the team will give 100 per cent in their events but we are realistic enough to know that not all have a realistic medal chance,” Khalil Al Jabber said. “But in every case we know that each athlete has their own personal goal. For some it would be a triumph simply to get into the final of their event.” “The performance of the team means a lot to Qatar and its people. Over the years we have built a good infrastructure for sport and made sport and sports participation central to life in the State. We are now gradually beginning to see the fruits of the investment that has been made. “For example, this is the first time we have been represented in Taekwondo which means that the standard must be improving thanks to the facilities which are available. Fencing is another sport which has taken giant steps as the federation was only established 12 year ago and now has a representative in the Olympic Games.” Today everybody involved in sport in Qatar is focused on the Games and helping the competitors achieve maximum performance. “The Federations and everybody else are being very cooperative. Everybody shares the same goal,” Khalil Al Jabber said. The Beijing Olympic Games provide a global showcase for sport in Qatar but the Chef de Mission sees the Games not as an end in themselves but as a stepping stone on a longer and ultimately more important journey. “The Olympic Games provide an opportunity to show Qatar and the world what is happening in sport in Qatar. Our ultimate goal though is beyond Beijing. It is about continually bringing youngsters into sport, identifying their talents and providing them with the facilities, resources and support they need to achieve their potential,” Khalil Al Jabber said. “We have to think constantly about the future and while our immediate focus may be Beijing 2008, at the back of our minds is the task of developing talent for the 2010 Asian Games in Guanzou and, beyond that, the Olympic Games in London in 2012. “We have created a sports structure in Qatar in which everything comes under the Olympic umbrella. This extends from our highly successful Schools Olympic Day programme to the Games themselves. “For reasons of enjoyment, social fulfilment and health, we want to encourage Qataris of all ages to engage in sport and it is particularly important to do this by working closely and supporting youngsters. “Schools Olympic Day succeeded in involving hundreds of thousands of young Qataris in sport, some for the first time. Many will have enjoyed the experience and been encouraged to develop their sporting interests and talents as far as they will take them. “This, alongside our ongoing talent identification programmes, will help us to recognise potential among youngsters and develop them for the future. The Youth Olympic Games in Singapore may provide a platform for some of them but our focus is longer-term. “Success in the Olympic Games will be celebrated throughout Qatar and provide clear evidence of what can be achieved on the world stage. I hope and expect that this will inspire youngsters who will want to emulate members of the Beijing team at Olympic Games in the future. Like some members of his team, this will be Khalil Al Jabber’s first Olympic games and he is delighted to be a part of it. “Whether I carry the flag or the country’s name, the Opening Ceremony will be a very proud moment for me personally and for my country,” he said. 20 QatarSport Q3.08
o o o o o o o o o beijing 2008 Samuel Adil Bari Francis Athletics : 100m Career Highlights • Holder of the Qatari, Gulf Arab and Asian record in the 100m event, with a time of 9.99 seconds. Holder of the international military 100m record. • Asian Championship, 100m, Gold Medal, Jordan 2007 • 4th International Military Athletics, 100m, Gold Medal, India 2007 • 2nd Indoor Asian Athletics, 60m, Gold Medal, Macao 2007 • Asian Indoor Championship, 60m, Gold Medal, Qatar 2008 Bound for beijing Mohammed Aaisa Adhawadi Athletics: 110 m hurdles Career Highlights • Qatar and Gulf record holder • Arab Championship, Bronze Medal, Syria 2001 • 14th Asian Games, 6th place, Korea 2002 • Arab Championship, Bronze Medal, Jordan 2003 14.11 sec Bronze • Gulf Military Champs, Gold Medal, U.A.E. 2006 • Gulf Military Champs, Gold Medal, Qatar 2007 • Arab Championship, Gold Medal, Jordan 2007 • Asian Champs, Silver Medal, Jordan 2007 • World Military Athletics Championship, Silver medal, 2007 India Sultan Khamis Zaman Athletics: 5,000m/10,000m Career Highlights • Gulf Cross-country Championship 12km, Team Gold, Qatar 2005 • World Military Cross-Country championship 5km, Gold Medal, Tunisia 2004 • Arab tournament 10,000m Silver Medal, 2007 • Arab tournament 5,000m, Silver Medal, 2007 • 3rd Asian Indoor Championship 3,000m, Gold Medal, Qatar 2008 • World Cross-Country Championship 12km Bronze Medal, Scotland 2008 • World Military Cross-Country Championship 12km,Team Gold, Switzerland 2008 • Arab Military Cross-Country Championship 12km, Team Gold, Tunisia 2008 M Thamer Kamal Ali Athletics: 3,000m hurdles and 1,500m Introducing the qatari athletes who will be battling for medals at the olympic games Career Highlights • World Military Cross-Country Championship 5km, Team Gold, Tunisia 2004 • Arab Military Cross-Country Championship 5km, Team Gold, Algeria 2008 • World Military Cross-Country Championship 5km, Team Gold, Switzerland 2008. • Asian Indoor Championship 3,000m, Gold Medal, Qatar 2008 • World Cross-Country Championship 5km, 5th Place, Kenya 2007 • Arab Athletics Championship, 3,000m, Silver Medal, Jordan Q3.08 QatarSport 21
Page 1: QatarSport Q3.2008 the official mag
Page 4 and 5: Sheikh Saoud Bin Abdulrahman Al-Tha
Page 6 and 7: News in Brief Young Qatari athletes
Page 8 and 9: News in Brief ASPIRE students earn
Page 10 and 11: A visiting delegation from the Asia
Page 12 and 13: o o o o o o o o o LIFE - Be part of
Page 14 and 15: o o o o o o o o o beijing 2008 GREA
Page 16 and 17: o o o o o o o o o beijing 2008 The
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Page 22 and 23: B A C D E Rashid Shafi Bital Adusri
Page 24 and 25: o o o o o o o o o STARS IN QATAR WH
Page 26 and 27: o o o o o o o o o PARTNERS IN SPORT
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Page 31 and 32: Asian Optimist Sailing Championship
Page 33 and 34: World sports rankings Clockwise fro
Page 35 and 36: The PGA European Tour Chief Executi

EYES ON CHINA GOLD - Qatar Olympic Committee

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