From left: Dr Hassan Al Ansari, Hamad Al Abdan, Mohammed Issa Al Fadala, Reema Abu Khadija, Hassan Al Mohammadi and Abdulrahman Al Muftah at the press conference at Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) headquarters yesterday. Kammutty V P
By Isabel Ovalle
DOHA: Participation in the Schools Olympic Programme (SOP), organised by the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC), has grown 400 percent since the first edition in 2007. This year a total of 370 schools will compete.
The sixth edition of the SOP starts this month and will conclude in April, with competition in 10 different disciplines, including a new addition - tennis. It is organised with the collaboration of the Supreme Education Council (SEC) and Enterprise Qatar with the theme ‘Sports and Investment’. There will also be a section dedicated to Paralympics.
The launch of this edition was announced at a press conference attended by Mohammmad Eisa Al Fadalah, Executive Director of the SOP, Dr Hassan Al Ansari, Secretary General of the Qatar Paralympic Federation, Abdularahman Al Muftah, from Qatar School Sports Federation, and Hamad Al Abdan, Operation Manager at the Enterprise Qatar, among others.
The director of SOP explained that this year’s theme ‘Sport and Investment’ aims to underline ways of circulating the concept of sport investment among school students and transforming individual interests in sports into very profitable investment projects for society as a whole”.
Ultimately, through sports competitions and community events, the SOP aims to reinforce the links between sport and investment.
The Organising committee held meetings over the past weeks to talk about new sports that were under consideration, and selected tennis as 2012’s newest addition. Last year’s edition featured some 20.000 students that represented more than 300 schools.
The SOP celebrated five years with an increase of participation by 400 percent since its foundation in 2007-2008. The programme began with 7,000 male and female students and has reached 20,000 students from 370 schools in nine sporting disciplines.
Hassan Abdullah Al Mohammadi, Head of Media of the QOC, said that all types of schools are taking part in this event. The sports included are volleyball, tennis, handball, basketball and table tennis, among others. The matches will start this month and will conclude in April, with a break at the end of December and the beginning of January. The competition and results will be transmitted through social media like Facebook and Twitter.
The Peninsula
