A Qatari beach handball player in action in this file photo.
Doha: The draw of handball and football events at the ANOC World Beach Games, Qatar 2019 will be held at the QOC headquarters today.
The international multi-sport event is organised by the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) and hosted by the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC).
The draw will be attended by QOC Secretary General Jassim bin Rashid Al Buenain, ANOC Secretary General Ms. Gunilla Lindberg and representatives of the participating international federations.
Men’s Handball event will bring together 12 teams, namely Australia, Brazil, Croatia, Denmark, Spain, Hungary, Oman, Sweden, Tunisia, Uruguay, USA and hosts Qatar while women’s event will see 12 teams, namely Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, Denmark, Spain, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Tunisia, USA and Vietnam.
Moreover, 16 teams will participate in Men’s football event.
Brazil, El Salvador, Spain, Iran, Italy, Japan, Morocco, Mexico, Paraguay, Russia, Solomon Islands, Switzerland, UAE, Ukraine, Uruguay and Senegal will contest in the men’s event while women’s event will feature athletes from Brazil, Cape Verde, Spain, Britain, Mexico, Paraguay, Russia and USA.
The football events will be held at Katara beach while the handball events will be staged in Al Gharafa.
Meanwhile, team Qatar will be looking to shine on home soil as the country prepares to host the inaugural edition of the event.
Qatari athletes are gearing up to face stiff competition from the global stars. Most of the athletes are already making themselves busy at training camps and the national sports federations have developed detailed training programmes to prepare their athletes for the competition and ensure a very successful outing.
Qatar boasts of spectacular oceanfront locations and is ready to provide the perfect setting for NOCs and their athletes to compete in exciting beach, action and water sports.
Beach sports have witnessed a huge development in the country over the years with teams representing the country winning medals at major regional and international competitions.
Qatar beach handball team is the current champion and the dominant force in Asia having claimed the title of the Asian Beach Handball Championships for the fifth time in a row (2011, 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2019).
They have also won bronze medal at the IHF World Championships (2014 and 2016) on two occasions.
The national beach volleyball team also made their Olympic debut at the 2016 Rio Games while Qatar’s 3x3 basketball team have won the Asian Basketball Beach Games twice - Phuket 2014 and Danang 2016.
Naji Al Amri, Chef De Mission to the ANOC World Beach Games Qatar 2019, said that Qatar’s participation at the event is in line with QOC’s commitment to featuring at any sports competition that will bring more glory to the country and help to further develop its athletes.
“Qatar’s delegation will be participating in eight sports events during the competition. This poses a challenge for our athletes and that is why the federations, in cooperation with the QOC represented by Sports Affairs Department, have developed a detailed training program to adequately prepare Team Qatar for this inaugural edition of the competition. We believe that the team will give their best and bring great glory and honour to the country,” he added.
