DOHA, 8 October 2006 — Qatar nurtures the ambition of becoming a sports excellence center in the GCC and is keen to stage the Olympic Games by successfully hosting the 15th Asian Games Doha 2006, Abdullah Khalid Al-Qahtani, director general of the executive office of Doha Asian Games Organizing Committee (DAGOC), told a press conference at the DAGOC office here yesterday.
“I’ve no doubt that the Asian Games will be a success and we’ll follow it up by making Doha the venue for some future major sports events. We’ve already submitted the bids for the 2016 Olympic Games to the International Olympic Committee (IOC),” Al-Qahtani said addressing local and visiting journalists who include 30 representatives of the print and broadcast media from Asian countries including Saudi Arabia, other GCC countries, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and Korea.
According Al-Qahtani, the Asian Games, scheduled from Dec. 1 to 15, will have a total investment of $2.8 billion, the entire amount funded by the Qatar government.
Part of the fund is being raised through sponsors, the sale of TV rights, tickets, etc., he added.
He said 45 countries had confirmed their participation in the upcoming games, but the exact number of athletes taking part in 39 sports and 424 events (one event was added today to the earlier announced 423 events) will be confirmed by mid-October. “Our estimate as of today is 15,500 athletes will take part,” Al-Qahtani said. In all 10,541 beds were being readied for the athletes and their accompanying officials at the Asian Village.
Contingents from various countries will arrive and return soon after their events during the games. This way there will not be much pressure on the village for accommodation.
“China, India, Korea and Japan are among the major country-participants and the exact composition of their contingents will be confirmed within a week,” he said.
He ensured that tight security would be provided to the athletes with the help of high-tech gadgets, CCTV cameras and security officials both at the village and also at the venues.
Ticket sales, which had slackened due to the summer vacation, have started picking up. “Recently, we signed contracts with Japan and China for selling tickets through those countries. We have made arrangements throughout the GCC to sell tickets. Also, tickets are being made available through requests on our website,” Al-Qahtani said, adding that sports clubs and schools are playing a crucial role in distributing tickets. Qatar’s Ministry of Education has already sought 60,000 tickets for its students. “We project to sell 60 percent of all our tickets during this month and hope to sell the rest as the semifinals and finals of each event approach,” he said.
About the infrastructure for the games, Al-Qahtani said: “We’re providing state-of-the-art facilities for the events at various venues. Some 97 percent of the infrastructure is already completed. We’re ahead of schedule and everything will be in place in the coming days.” About 2,000 members of the print media and 2,000 others from radio and TV channels are expected to cover the games, which will have the opening ceremony on Dec. 1 and closing ceremony on Dec. 15, both at Khalifa Stadium at 6 p.m.
The DAGOC board of directors include Sheikh Tamim ibn Hamad Al-Thani, the heir apparent, member of the IOC, president of the Qatar National Olympic Committee and chairman of the DAGOC.
The board also includes Abdullah ibn Hamad Al-Attiyah, second deputy prime minister, minister of energy and industry and deputy chairman of DAGOC; Yousef Hussein Kamal, minister of finance; Sheikh Abdulrahman ibn Khalifa Al-Thani, minister of municipal affairs and agriculture; and Sheikh Saoud ibn Abdulrahman Al-Thani, secretary-general of the Qatar National Olympic Committee and vice president of the Olympic Council of Asia.
Assisting Al-Qahtani at the DAGOC’s executive office are Ahmed Abdullah Al-Khulaifi, deputy director general for corporate support, and Yousef Mohammed Al-Othman, deputy director general for operations.
