The last three days in Muscat was a busy time for the Doha 2030 Bid Committee delegation. The 2030 Bid Committee - headed by the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) Chairman H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani - met with Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) officials and held a series of discussions with Asian sports family. Welcoming the OCA family at the Doha Majlis to detail Doha's plans and vision for the 2030 Asian Games bid race was just one segment of the campaign. What seemed like a few days of exhaustive work was essentially culmination of years of hard work and long toil to create worthy sports culture in the country and the region.
Hosts of the 2006 Asian Games, Doha on Wednesday once again emerged victorious by beating candidate city Riyadh to win the rights to host the world's second largest multi-discipline event in 10 years' time from now.
The 2030 Asian Games bid race victory was well deserved on Wednesday when the OCA President Sheikh Ahmad Al Fahad Al Sabah flashed a placard that had Dona printed on it. While the Asian sports fraternity warmly applauded Doha's bid race win, the sports pundits in Asia know it was a win for the belief that Qatar has proudly exhibited since the early 90s.
The Qatari capital has built envious sports infrastructure in less than two decades including the world's biggest indoor sports facility - the Aspire Academy. It has hosted sports events that fans around the world pay hefty amounts to watch. And this has been a regular feature for more than 20 years. Qatar has also invested heavily in improving its player-base, encouraging the country's youth to opt for sports as a way life. In the last four months, with sports family struggling from the havoc caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Qatar stepped in and helped the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) complete its biggest club event - the AFC Champions League with flawless organization that required bubble-to-bubble environment for 32 teams in two month-long events.
Wednesday's Asian Games bid race win will give Doha another chance to impress the sport-loving world with its high quality organization and impressive performances by its athletes on the field of play. Given Doha's past record of hosting world-class events and leadership's uninhibited ambition to rise as sporting giant in the region, it goes without saying that the OCA's vote in favour of the Doha 2030 Bid Committee was truly justified.
Sports fans in Qatar, the region and the rest of the continent will enjoy a sports party to remember in 2030!
Good luck, Doha!
