The IAAF evaluation delegation today concluded its two-day visit to Doha, headed by IAAF Vice President Sebastian Coe, aimed at examining Qatar’s bid to host the 2019 World Athletics Championships. At the end of the visit, the Qatar Olympic Committee held a global press conference at its headquarters, at which HE Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Secretary General of the Qatar Olympic Committee, welcomed the IAAF delegation, describing the visit as exciting and important, saying it was an opportunity to highlight Doha as a global hub for sporting events, as well as to give the delegation a picture of what we will become in the very near future. He said we worked to show the true picture of our lively city, Doha, through presentations that were extremely precise and free of any exaggeration, adding that sports facilities in Qatar have developed enormously in a relatively short time, and that these facilities and leading sports centres have won admiration from many countries. He added that our capital has long hosted numerous prominent sporting events and has regularly hosted the annual Diamond League athletics competitions since 1997, and confirmed that possessing such deep experience, backed by broad knowledge, will guarantee a successful hosting of the 2019 World Athletics Championships, and that holding the championship on this region’s soil will give it the chance to become a historic event showcasing the skills of the world’s leading athletes in front of a new generation of enthusiastic fans and athletes, and that it will be a genuine turning point in the championship’s history and a new beginning in the world of sporting competitions. Sheikh Saoud thanked the partners supporting the Qatari bid to host the World Championships: Qatar Airways, Aspetar, Aspire Zone, Qatar Foundation and Msheireb.
The president of the Qatar Athletics Federation, Major General Dahlan Al Hamad, also spoke, saying: “We welcome you to Doha, the city that loves sport and sporting competitions in particular. Our capital has hosted numerous Diamond League athletics meetings since it was known as the “Super Grand Prix” athletics tournament. Every time we host this league, we achieve more and more success, and this competition’s name has become closely linked with our beloved country, Qatar, and today we are doing everything we can to provide the best services and meet the wishes of athletes, staff, the media and the fans. Through our continued commitment to providing the best services we have achieved more success.” He added: “When we hosted the 2010 World Indoor Athletics Championships nearly five years ago, that championship saw its largest ever participation from numerous countries and we achieved unparalleled success. That is the success we aspire to, one worthy of the service we provide. There is no doubt that Doha deserves the honour of hosting the 2019 World Athletics Championships
Lord Sebastian Coe, Vice President of the IAAF and head of the IAAF delegation that concluded its visit to Doha aimed at fully reviewing Qatar’s bid to host the 2019 World Athletics Championships, expressed his satisfaction at the completion of the delegation’s task in evaluating and reviewing the bid files of the candidate countries ahead of the vote to choose the winning bid on 18 November, with Doha competing against Eugene in the United States and Barcelona in Spain
