Medals galore as Team Qatar celebrate memorable year

Qatar continued its amazing run in the sports field, setting highest standards of excellence and achievements after it participated in and organised a number of local, regional and international sport events in the year 2022. These efforts helped the country’s name to rise high at international sport arenas this year.
Qatar’s biggest and most memorable achievement this year was successful hosting of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which was hailed as the best ever. The football showpiece, which was held for the first time in the Middle East and Arab world, was unprecedented as it inspired the entire region and was praised worldwide for its message of unity, peace and love.
Most notably, Qatar national teams spared no effort in individual and group events, claimed titles and set remarkable results that has bolstered the country’s name at the regional and international levels.
Qatar’s Olympic champion Mutaz Essa Barshim won his third consecutive high jump gold at the world championships in Eugene, USA, while Tokyo Gold medallist Fares Ibrahim claimed two gold medals and one silver medal at the Asian Weightlifting Championships in Bahrain.
Shooter Rashid Saleh al-Athba made headlines by securing a direct qualification for the 2024 Paris Olympics after claiming bronze medal in the men’s skeet event at the World Shotgun Championship held in Croatia, making him the first Team Qatar athlete to Qualify to 2024 Summer Olympics.
Shooters also excelled in the team event with Rashid partnering with Masoud Saleh al-Athba and Abdulaziz al-Atteh to win gold in men’s team skeet at the 10th Asian Shooting Championship in Kazakhstan.
The Qatar team also won their fifth consecutive Asian Men’s Handball Championship, while the beach volleyball duo Cherif Younesse and Ahmad Tijan won three titles in 2022: West Asia Beach Volleyball Zonal Tour, King of the Court event and Pro Tour Maldives Challenge. In Squash, Abdullah al-Tamimi won a gold medal at the West Asia Men’s Squash Championships held in Iran.
The third GCC Sport Games 2022 in Kuwait witnessed Team Qatar athletes display splendid performance to ensure improved results by claiming 52 medals including 16 gold, 21 silver and 15 bronze. Team Qatar athletes kept up their good run at the fifth Islamic Solidarity Games in Turkey by winning 12 medals, including 4 gold, 3 silver and 5 bronze.
Qatar’s age group teams put in a promising performance and secured good results and were not far from achievement, as the U-15 national team claimed the title of the 2022 West Asian Table Tennis Championship in Jordan. Likewise, the Qatari youth team won the GCC Men’s U18 Basketball Championship in Dubai, while they won bronze at the Arab Youth Basketball Championship held in Egypt. Qatar fencers bagged bronze at the West Asian U20 Fencing Championship in Jordan.
Sports in Qatar has played an effective role in promoting the healthy culture inside the community in 2022 with the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) organising a series of community and sport events in. The prominent of them was the 2.5km Sport For Life Walk at Al Shaqab on the National Sport Day, Qatar’s inaugural Spartan Race, QOC E-Sports Tournament and Nishan Vodafone Ramadan Tournament.
The QOC has always been keen to celebrate the international sport days, as it organised the Olympic Day and International Day of Fair Play in this year.