AL RAYYAN: The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC) has commenced the deconstruction of Al Rayyan Stadium, located in Umm Al Afai on the western edge of Al Rayyan Municipality, in preparation for the construction of a new 40,000-seater stadium as Qatar continues to build up towards the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
“The beginning of works on this project and other World Cup projects reflects the commitment of Qatar to host this tournament and its eagerness to organise one of the best tournaments in the history of the World Cup,” said the Minister of Youth and Sport, H E Salah Bin Ghanim Al Ali.
“The new Al Rayyan Stadium will be an important addition to the sport infrastructure of Qatar. Besides hosting a number of World Cup matches, it will play a pivotal role in the development of sport in Al Rayyan. The new facilities will encourage healthy and active lifestyles and enable Al Rayyan to host local and international sport competitions,” the minister said.
“Our vision for the first ever FIFA World Cup in the Middle East is continuing to take shape on the ground with deconstruction beginning at Al Rayyan Stadium. With work underway in different stages on five stadiums, Qatar is continuing to make progress in stadium delivery,” said Hassan Al Thawadi, Secretary General of the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy.
“With this important step and the detailed planning that has gone into the precinct surrounding the stadium, we are also ensuring a lasting legacy for Al Rayyan, which will benefit from an integrated and sustainable sporting facility,” Al Thawadi added.
H E Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Bin Ahmad Al Thani, President of the Qatar Football Association (QFA), said the QFA, in cooperation with the management of Al Rayyan Sports Club, have taken all the necessary measures to ensure that this project does not affect Al Rayyan’s football club, one of the oldest and most widely supported teams in the county.
The SC has held meetings with club officials and fans at Al Rayyan Sports Club to discuss the benefits of the new stadium and precinct and is working in close coordination with the Qatar Olympic Committee on the reuse of lighting fixtures, transformers, seats and other stadium installations and equipment from other venues across Qatar, including Al Ahli Stadium. Ninety percent of deconstruction waste will be recycled.
Having reviewed the plans, H E Sheikh Saoud Bin Khalid Bin Hamad Al Thani, Chairman of Al Rayyan Sports Club, is pleased with the project, which will provide the club with a new world-class base. He expressed the management’s and players’ support for the new stadium and precinct and their willingness to adapt during deconstruction. The club’s current staff will move to a temporary building near the existing stadium site until work ends.
The SC has commenced its community engagement program in Al Rayyan through visits to “majlises” to establish close relationships with local councils and keep people informed about changes in their neighbourhoods, along with the benefits of playing host to a proposed venue for the 2022 World Cup.
Residents of Al Rayyan were briefed on the deconstruction timetable and shown blueprints for the stadium and precinct. In meetings, residents stressed the importance of green spaces and pedestrian pathways within the stadium precinct to allow for the year-round practice of sport and encourage healthy and active lifestyles in the community.
Mohammed Bin Hamoud Al Shafi, a member of Al Rayyan’s municipal council, called on the city’s residents to support this project: “We are delighted that our country is hosting the FIFA World Cup and we are ready to receive the world in 2022. Visitors will find Al Rayyan friendly and welcoming. We are proud that our city will play host to such a great event and we are confident that the stadium and precinct will become a landmark and a gathering place for our city and benefit Al Rayyan and its people over the long term.” THE PENINSULA
