Officials finalising preparations for Qatar’s Schools Olympic Programme.

DOHA: More than 300 schools and 20,000 people are expected to participate in the sixth edition of Qatar’s Schools Olympic Programme (SOP) which will kick off on October 8.

The steering committee has selected tennis as the newest addition at this season under the theme ‘Sports and Investment’.

The SOP will hold a teachers’ technical meeting on September 19 to outline the activities and schedule of this year’s edition for participating teachers, while also introducing them to the new SOP logo.

Khalil Al Jaber, Qatar Olympic Committee Sports Affairs Director, said: “SOP plays an important role in the social and sporting life of the participating schools as it promotes community spirit, a balanced healthy lifestyle and for this edition, emphasises the role that business plays in sports.”

This year’s Schools Olympic Programme, which will run from October to April 2013, begins on a high note as Qatar celebrates this summer’s historical achievements at the London Olympics, where it won two bronze medals and scored another first by sending four female athletes to compete in the Games.

Held annually in Qatar since 2007, the SOP is a collaborative effort of the Qatar Olympic Committee, the Supreme Education Council, Qatar School Sport Federation and Qatar Paralympics Committee to engage the community in an active, healthy lifestyle and promote a sporting culture in Qatar, in line with the goals of Qatar’s National Vision 2030. The Peninsula