Qatar has maintained a strong presence in the Olympic Games since its debut at the Los Angeles in 1984. The country has shown significant progress from one edition to the next, earning a prominent position among Gulf and Arab nations through the medals won by its athletes over the years.
Qatar’s total Olympic medal tally stands at eight: two golds, two silvers and four bronzes. The Qatari delegation is optimistic about increasing this historic haul in Paris, thanks to the unwavering support and continuous development of Qatari sports, which have propelled the nation to the top rank in the Gulf region and fifth among Arab countries in terms of Olympic medals.
Qatar first participated in the Olympics at the Montreal Games in 1976 with an administrative delegation only. On March 14, 1979, the Qatar Olympic Committee was established, joining the International Olympic Committee in 1980 and the Olympic Council of Asia in 1981.
Qatar’s active participation began at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984, competing in football, athletics, and shooting. The football team made a notable debut by drawing 2-2 with France, which went on to win the gold medal. Despite this strong performance, losses to Chile and Norway prevented Qatar from advancing to the quarter-finals.
In the 1988 Seoul Olympics, Qatar sent a delegation of 12 members, including eight athletes in athletics. This participation was crucial for gaining experience, especially as it was only the second Olympic Games held in Asia, following the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
Qatar achieved its first Olympic medal at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, where 31 athletes participated. Mohamed Suleiman won the bronze medal in the men’s 1500 metres, outpacing a field of renowned global athletes and marking a historic moment for Qatar and the Gulf region.
The football team also excelled, reaching the quarter-finals for the first time. They secured a 1-0 victory over Egypt, drew 1-1 with Colombia, and lost 2-0 to eventual champions Spain, advancing as the second team in their group but falling to Poland 2-0 in the quarter-finals.
At the 1996 Atlanta Games, Qatar’s 12-athlete delegation competed in athletics, shooting, volleyball, and table tennis. This edition marked the Olympic debut of shooter Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah, who would go on to achieve significant milestones in Qatari sports history. Additionally, Hamad al-Hamad participated in table tennis, having earned his spot by winning the West Asia Championship.
Qatar’s fifth consecutive Olympic participation came at the 2000 Sydney Olympics in Australia. This marked the first appearance of Qatari swimmers in the Olympic Games. Qatar was represented by a delegation of 17 athletes competing in athletics, weightlifting, table tennis, shooting, and swimming. At the Sydney Olympics, Qatar secured a bronze medal in weightlifting through athlete Asaad Saif in the 105kg category, marking the country’s second Olympic medal.
In the 2004 Athens Olympics in Greece, Qatar competed in five sports: shooting, wrestling, weightlifting, swimming, and athletics. Shooting champion Nasser al-Attiyah carried the Qatari flag during the parade. This participation was the largest for Qatar compared to previous Olympic editions, with a total delegation of 41 members, including 20 athletes.
At the 2008 Beijing Olympics in China, Qatar participated in six sports: athletics, shooting, swimming, weightlifting, fencing, and taekwondo. The number of participating athletes increased to 22, along with the administrative delegation. This Olympic edition saw the largest Qatari athletics delegation to date, with 14 athletes, marking the largest compared to previous Olympic participation.
The 2012 London Olympics marked a new milestone for Qatar with the achievement of two medals: a silver by Mutaz Barshim in the high jump and a bronze by al-Attiyah in the skeet shooting event. This brought Qatar’s total medal tally to four: one silver and three bronzes. Qatar participated in shooting, athletics, swimming and table tennis at the London Olympics, with four Qatari women athletes making their debut, and shooting champion Bahia al-Hamad carrying the Qatari flag at the opening ceremony.
At the 2016 Rio Olympics in Brazil, Qatari successes continued with Barshim winning a silver medal, giving Qatar its fifth Olympic medal. Qatar’s delegation included 38 athletes representing 10 sports federations: athletics, handball, shooting, equestrian, boxing, beach volleyball, swimming, table tennis, judo and weightlifting.
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics in Japan marked another significant achievement for Qatar, recording its most successful participation ever.
Qatar won two gold medals through Barshim in the high jump and Fares Ibrahim in weightlifting, along with a bronze in beach volleyball through duo Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan, marking the first time an Arab team sport won an Olympic medal. This brought Qatar’s total Olympic medal count to eight, with aspirations for more success in future Olympic Games.
At the Paris Olympics, which will begin from Friday, Qatar is aiming to surpass its three medals won in Tokyo. This time around, there are more athletes – 14 in total – than there were three years ago in Tokyo, increasing the chances of improving the medal tally. The fourteen athletes representing Qatar at Paris 2024 are:
Mutaz Essa Barshim, Abderrahman Samba, Abubaker Haydar, Bassem Hemeida, Ismail Dawood, Ammar Ismail, Saif Mohamed and Shahad Mohamed in track and field, Saeed Abu Sharab and Rashid Saleh al-Athba in shooting, Fares Ibrahim in weightlifting, Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan in beach volleyball and Abdulaziz al-Obaidly in swimming.
