Qatar Olympic Committee Secretary General Jassim bin Rashid Al-Bueinain visited the Qatari delegation’s headquarters at the Athletes’ Village ahead of the start of the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. Al-Bueinain reviewed the arrangements and workflow put in place by the administrative team to meet the needs of Qatar athletes.
DOHA: Qatar will look to its athletics team for a strong medal haul at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, which gets underway on Saturday and runs through October 4.
The squad brings together experienced campaigners and promising young athletes across track, field and jumping events, with Qatar aiming to build on its successful athletics record at the continental showpiece.
Ammar Ismail and Ashraf Osman will compete in the 400m, while Abderrahman Samba and Bassem Mohamed will line up in the 400m hurdles.
Hatem Hameed and Abubaker Haydar will contest the 800m, with Mohamed Waheed and Ibrahim Abbas entered in the 1500m. Zakaria Ibrahim will compete in the 3000m steeplechase.
In the field events, Moaaz Ibrahim will take part in the discus throw, while Ashraf El-Seify and Abderrahman Ibrahim will compete in the hammer throw. Ahmed Jebrin will contest the shot put.
Mutaz Barshim will lead Qatar’s challenge in the high jump, while Saif Mohamed will compete in the pole vault.
Qatar won six athletics medals at the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou, including three golds. Barshim won in high jump, Mohamed Al-Garni took the 1500m title and Samba claimed gold in the 400m hurdles.
The three silver medals came from the 4x400m relay team of Samba, Bassem Hemeida, Ismail Daoud and Ashraf Osman, El-Seify in the hammer throw and Hemeida in the 400m. The athletics team will be hoping to maintain that momentum and deliver another strong showing in Japan.
Qatar women seek winning finish in volleyball
Qatar’s women’s volleyball team will look to end its Asian Games campaign on a positive note when it faces Hong Kong in the third and final round of Group D today.
The Qatari side is seeking a response after suffering a heavy straight-sets defeat to South Korea in its second group match, going down 25-6, 25-6, 25-10. Qatar had also lost its opening match to Vietnam in straight sets.
Qatar 3x3 teams set sights on strong Asian Games showing
Qatar’s 3x3 basketball teams will be looking to make an impact at Asian Games, with the men’s side targeting a strong run on the continental stage.
The men’s team features Mohammed Hashim, Hamad Yassin, Nizar and Mubarak Jama. Qatar begins its campaign on September 21 against Indonesia before taking on Chinese Taipei. The women’s 3x3 competition begins on September 22, with Qatar facing Sri Lanka and China. Both teams will be aiming to make the most of their Asian Games experience and strengthen Qatar’s presence in the rapidly growing 3x3 format.
Qatar U-23 seek response against Saudi Arabia
Qatar’s U-23 football team will look to revive its Asian Games campaign when it takes on Saudi Arabia in the second round of Group D at Mizuho Park Stadium in Nagoya today.
The match kicks off at 1:30pm Doha time, with Qatar seeking a positive result after suffering a 4-1 defeat to South Korea in its opening game.
Head coach Jose Angel Lacunza and his staff have used the training sessions since that defeat to address the shortcomings exposed against Republic of Korea and prepare the players for another demanding encounter.
Saudi Arabia will pose a different challenge, but Qatar knows it needs to collect points to keep its hopes of advancing from the group alive.
Qatar will be represented by 243 athletes, comprising 184 men and 59 women. Qatari athletes will compete in 26 sports and 32 disciplines under 18 national sports federations.
