(MENAFN- The Peninsula) QNA
Doha: Brigadier Khalid bin Hamad Al Attiyah, President of Qatar and the Arab Police Sport Federations and President of Qatar Taekwondo, Judo and Karate Federation (QTJKF), underlined that the Amir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and the Father Amir HH Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani laid the foundations for a comprehensive sports renaissance at all levels.
'Without the unlimited support of the wise leadership, we have not been able to reach this renaissance that is recognised by all countries of the world, especially that 10 years ago, no one imagined that Qatar would become a pioneer in the field of sports at all levels, Al Attiyah said in an interview with Qatar News Agency (QNA).
Al Attiyah added that the State of Qatar has unlimited ambitions in various fields, and officials are convinced of the Qatari capabilities and competencies, which contributed to the achievement of success in all domains.
He said that sport is life of Qataris and an important part of their thinking and daily plans, as all officials seek to develop this sector and make more achievements in various sports.
The QTJKF President said that the Federation has been harnessing all efforts and potentials through international camps and championships in order to raise the level of its players before the Asian Games this year in Jakarta, and the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2020.
He noted that the Federation seeks to win medals at the Asian Games, where the chances are great in light of the high level of its players, the referring to the achievements made by the judo, Taekwondo and Karate teams recently.
Taekwondo team enjoyed a number of achievement this year.
Qatari martial artist Othman Boularas won the gold medal in the Taekwondo Beach World Championship in Greece in April, while the Karate team won the bronze medal in Japan. The Judo team won one gold, two silvers and one bronze in the Arab Police Championship in Tunisia.
Al Attiyah also said that the biggest obstacle the Federation faces is the small number of players, but he revealed that the Federation seeks to attract more players by taking care of young people and organizing different championships for various age groups in cooperation with schools.
He added that Qatar has a lot of academies and centres for the three games, adding that the Federation is in constant contact with them and involve them in all the local championships, which allows the Federation to follow up the best players.
Al Attiyah stressed that the foreign participations of the Federation have not been affected by the illegal siege imposed on the State of Qatar almost a year ago, noting that the Federation is participating in all international tournaments, and in the GCC championships which are held in Oman and Kuwait.
He regretted the siege countries' use of sports as a political tool, noting that the intervention of governments in sport is prohibited by the International Olympic Committee and all international federations, and may be offset by the suspension of participation in international activities.
'Federation works on implementing the Ministry of Interior's policy through activating the principle of high sport and the spirit of friendly competition. It also works on developing the youth and sport activity through integrating with all the sectors of the community, said Al Attiyah who also heads the Qatar and Arab Police Sport Federations.
He added that, the most important objectives of the police sport federation is to improve the fitness of the police through sports activities that fit them, upgrade their skill level to prepare a team that would represent the police in different games and participate in local, Arab and international sports activities.
He noted that the Police volleyball team is one of the most successful recently and is a strong contender in national tournaments. The team won the league last season and was the runner up this season, this fall back happened because the police team is the only team with no age group and the players are all members of the police force.
He highlighted the federation's keenness to support all the sports events that Qatar organises or bids to organise, noting that the federation held an international conference to support the committee responsible for 2020 Olympics bid to be held in Qatar.
Commenting on football, Al Attiyah, a past football director at Al Sadd, said Al Sadd club performed a weak season on a national level.
'However in the Asian competition it has been a steady performance and has a good chance to win the Asian title for the third time in its history. On the other hand, Al Duhail are performing well this season, with a historical achievement by winning the league, Qatar Cup and Emir Cup, in addition to competing at the quarter finals of the Asian cup. In the past, Al Attiyah was the football team.
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