Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan hosted the 48th Amir Cup final on Qatar National Day last December to become the fourth fully operational 2022 FIFA World Cup tournament venue.
Doha: The Government Communications Office (GCO) yesterday highlighted Qatar’s success in positioning itself as global sporting hub.
“Qatar has reinforced its position as a global destination for major sporting events, implementing all necessary precautionary measures to combat COVID-19 and resolving to continue with its ambitious plans to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup despite any challenge,” the GCO said in a tweet sharing Qatar’s sporting achievements of 2020 in a video.
GCO said that two FIFA World Cup tournament stadiums were inaugurated in 2020 while 90% of infrastructure has been completed two years ahead of the World Cup kick off.
It is to be noted that in June last year, Qatar announced the completion of Education City Stadium. The stadium’s completion was marked during special programmes on the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy’s (SC) social media platforms due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.
The highlight of the programmes was a speech by the Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. The stadium’s successful completion was dedicated to frontline workers who worked tirelessly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nicknamed the ‘Diamond in the Desert’, the 40,000-capacity venue, located within Qatar Foundation’s Education City, is the first World Cup stadium to achieve a five-star sustainability rating under the Global Sustainability Assessment System.
Then in December last year, in the presence of Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan hosted the 48th Amir Cup final on Qatar National Day to become the fourth fully operational 2022 FIFA World Cup tournament venue to be inaugurated. The 40,000-capacity venue will host seven matches during Qatar 2022 up to the round-of-16 stage.
The GCO in the tweet said that the Doha Diamond League was the first global tournament Qatar hosted during COVID-19 pandemic, attended by 117 global participants in which strict precautionary measures and health protocols were implemented in accordance with MoPH regulations.
The GCO added that the success of the State of Qatar in hosting international sporting events in 2020 proves the country’s ability to overcome any challenge. “Qatar was awarded the 2030 Asian Games, and promises to host an extraordinary competition with an enduring legacy for Asia,” it added.
Regarding 2021, the GCO said that Qatar is looking forward to 2021 with more than 60 sporting events already planned.
It is to be mentioned here that the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) recently announced the calendar of sport events for the year 2021. This year’s calendar will see 63 sport events, including 6 international sport events , the most prominent of them are 2021 FIFA Club World Cup which will be held from February 1 - 11, FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour from February 22 to 26, Commercial Bank CHI Al Shaqab from February 25 to 27, Longines Global Champions Tour from March 4 to 6, FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour- Katara Beach Volleyball Cup from March 8 to 12 and Table Tennis final qualifiers and qualifying for Tokyo Olympics from March 15 to 20.
