The second Gulf Cooperation Council championship for girls and 14th for boys in athletics get under way tomorrow on the track and field of Khalifa International Stadium, hosted by Doha from 4-6 April. Three teams are taking part – Kuwait, Oman and Qatar – after Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates withdrew from the Gulf event at a critical time, which upset the calculations of the organising committee headed by HE Major General Dahlan Al Hamad, president of the Qatari and Asian federations and World Athletics vice-president, and raised a question mark over the aims behind the withdrawal of the three countries
Girls compete for the first time
For the first time in Gulf Cooperation Council sporting championships, and in line with the regulations and laws of the international athletics federation, Doha is launching the participation of Gulf girls alongside their brothers on the athletics track in a pioneering step in line with the global system
Kuwait and Oman in Doha
The Kuwaiti and Omani boys’ and girls’ delegations arrived in Doha yesterday ahead of the championship, settling into their base at the Holiday Villa Hotel amid a warm Qatari welcome for the two sister delegations. The visiting teams also held intensive training sessions yesterday in preparation for tomorrow’s competition
Technical meeting today
The Holiday Villa Hotel hosts the technical meeting for the Gulf athletics championship this morning, chaired by Mohammed Jassim Al Kuwari, secretary general of the Qatar Athletics Federation and director of the Gulf boys’ and girls’ championship, attended by the technical and administrative delegates of the championship, the chairman of the judges’ committee, Captain Abdulhakim Al Amri, head of the federation’s technical committee, as well as the directors of the participating teams. The meeting will discuss confirming the participating countries, the competition schedule and other technical and administrative matters
Al Dosari and Al Bushri to observe the championship
The organising committee has chosen Kuwait’s Saif Saud Al Dosari as technical observer and Oman’s Hamdan bin Hamad Al Bushri as administrative observer for the championship, which starts tomorrow on the track and field of Khalifa International Stadium, given that the Emirati and Saudi observers apologised for their inability to attend and carry out their sporting duty towards the event
