Al Jaish top the fourth athletics festival for the hopefuls category, Al Gharafa runners-up

Al Jaish Sports Club managed, for the first time, to take top spot and beat the Qatari clubs at the fourth athletics festival for the hopefuls category (ages 10-11), held at half past four in the afternoon on Sunday 29/4/2012 at the ground of Qatar SC, which had requested to host the championship, in line with the policy of the Qatar Athletics Federation of involving clubs in organising events and having them take on responsibility for encouraging and attracting children to practise athletics at clubs, so as to build a broad base of athletics fans, supporters and young participants at the clubs. The festival was attended by Mr Adel Mohammed Al Baker, secretary-general of the Qatar Athletics Federation, and Mr Essa Abdullah Al Harmi, assistant secretary-general, the festival’s two technical observers, as well as Mr Yaqoub Yousef Abdullah, board member, and administrative and technical staff from the clubs and a crowd of Qatar SC fans and organisers. Nine Qatari clubs competed, hoping to win the festival given its importance for the overall excellence shield points, with the first-place club earning 32 points towards the overall excellence shield, the second-place club 28 points, and so on, with 4 points deducted for each subsequent position down to the last-placed club, which earns 4 points; it should be noted that winners Al Jaish were not included in the overall excellence shield points as their categories are not yet complete, currently fielding only 3 categories – hopefuls, cubs and cadets – with a further category to be added each sporting season until all six categories are complete in 2015, at which point they will compete for the clubs’ overall excellence shield points. The following clubs took part in the festival: Al Sadd, Al Jaish, Al Wakrah, Al Arabi, Al Ahli, Al Gharafa, Al Rayyan, Al Khor and Qatar SC. The events, in the form of games designed for children, numbered eight: Formula 1, 30m, relay, 30m sponge hurdles, forward ball throw, rocket javelin throw, sideways jump and long jump. After fierce competition among the clubs in the festival’s events, Al Jaish’s hopefuls-category players settled the festival in their favour and won first place with a total of 68.33 points, the sum of points across the eight events, with the best-performing club in each event awarded 10 points, the next-best 8 points, the third-ranked club 7 points, and so on down to the least fortunate club in ninth place, which is awarded 1 point. Competition among the clubs was fierce throughout the festival, with Al Gharafa settling it in their favour to take second place with 58.33 points, while Al Ahli Sports Club took third place with 56.80 points.

At the end of the festival, Mr Adel Mohammed Al Baker, secretary-general of the Qatar Athletics Federation, Mr Essa Abdullah Al Harmi, assistant secretary-general, and Mr Yaqoub Yousef Abdullah, board member, crowned the winning players and clubs in the top three places with medals, and trophies were then distributed to the winning clubs in the top three places, namely Al Jaish, Al Gharafa and Al Ahli Sports Club, while IAAF certificates were distributed to all participating players amid great joy among the children at their participation and their success in the festival.

Below is the clubs’ standing in the third athletics festival for the hopefuls category (10-11 years)