DOHA: Qatar Foundation (QF) will celebrate National Sport Day with a special walkathon through Education City under the theme ‘Unlock Your Inner Athlete.’
Each stage of the walk will include educational activities to inspire men, women and children to lead healthier and more active lifestyles.
Engineer Saad Al Muhannadi, President, QF, said: “National Sport Day is a tangible demonstration of Qatar’s visionary commitment to its people’s long-term health.
“QF looks forward to ‘Unlock Your Inner Athlete’ theme to inspiring community members to get fit and adopt healthy lifestyles for several reasons. Not only can it drastically improve the quality of life, but it can also prevent illnesses.
“Over the past 20 years, QF has been working hard to advance these areas of healthcare through its centres of science and research dedicated to furthering Qatar National Vision 2030.”
The walkathon will give members of the community the opportunity to explore QF, while learning more about health and sports activities.
With the start line at Al Shaqab, participants will get the chance to learn about its world-class horses and events, all of which are part of QF’s mission to enhance cultural life and preserve the country’s traditions.
The route will then guide participants to a healthy living workshop.
They will also be able to visit West Green Spine along the walk, which will feature sport tournaments. Two competitions for people with special needs will include interactive wheelchair basketball and special needs table tennis.
The walkathon will end at Awsaj Academy which will host ladies-only exercise classes, traditional games for children and races.
Other activities include sports and demonstrations of taekwondo and gymnastics at Recreation Centre and a match at the cricket ground.
In the lead-up to the day, QF will run a social media competition on Instagram. The quiz will encourage people to test their well-being knowledge and educate followers on sports and healthcare opportunities available at QF. The winner will be announced on Tuesday morning.
QF, in collaboration with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, has produced a special song to encourage members of the community to exercise.
Aspire Zone Foundation
The Aspire Zone Foundation’s (AZF) celebrations will feature 12 sport challenges and competitions to encourage thousands to exercise physical activity.
Aspire Zone and its member organisations Aspire Academy, Aspetar and Aspire Logistics will hold activities which are permanent programmes offered by Aspire Zone throughout the year.
These include family cycling, fun run, fitness sessions, synchronised swimming, beach soccer, 5000-Step journey, family competitions, exercises to measure players’ performance, football exercises, movement activities for young children and football games for boys.
Families and individuals are invited to spend a day full of fun, energy and movement in a distinctive festival that promotes health and fitness.
Khalid Abdullah Al Sulaiteen, CEO, AZF, said: “Aspire Zone has become an icon of sport in the Middle East. Whenever sport is mentioned on any occasion, Aspire Zone comes to the mind immediately. This is primarily the case when it comes to National Sport Day. Our country designated the day to highlight the importance of sports and fitness. The day is a great chance for us at Aspire Zone to engage with the public on the ground and put our mission into action.
“This year’s preparations are in line with Aspire Zone’s mission to encourage our community to embrace a healthy lifestyle and engage in physical activity. We are contributing to the realisation of Qatar National Vision 2030 which draws upon social and human development as major pillars in the country’s development and achieving progress we all desire,” added Al Sulaiteen.
The Organising Committee will also educate participants on benefits and importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle and exercising physical activity.
Teach For Qatar
Teach For Qatar (TFQ) will host football competitions throughout the day at Katara.
Matches will be played on a custom-made mat representing a chalkboard.
“TFQ ethos is based on the belief that through high quality education, individuals can become champions on and off the playing field since the success of any individual in any field is based on similar values we believe in and try to instil in our students — respect, perseverance, collaboration, leadership and excellence,” said Dana Al Marri, TFQ Fellow at Amna bint Wahb Independent School for Girls.
TFQ will also host others games that combine the use of mental and physical strength to complete a task, and demonstrate how education and sports go hand-in-hand.
“The day is the perfect opportunity for us to apply the values we are taught and continue to hone throughout our TFQ Fellowship,” said Ibrahim Sowan, TFQ Fellow at Al Yarmook Independent School for Boys.
“Both in and outside my classroom, I try to be a role model for students by participating in the school’s sports activities and attending my students’ Physical Education classes. I do this, in part, to encourage students to play sports because it demonstrates just how values such as perseverance in a maths test or a football match can determine success or failure.”
With applications for the 2015-2017 Fellowship closing on April 1, TFQ continues to promote its two-year leadership development and teaching programme and will have an information booth at Katara.
TFQ activities will be held from 9am to 10pm.
Kahramaa
Kahramaa is organising races and volleyball and beach football competitions at Katara.
Activities will be held from 8.30am to 1pm as part of Kahramaa’s commitment to promote the health and wellbeing of Qatari society in general and its staff in particular.
There will be zones for children and women.
The Peninsula
