Fahad Saad Al Qahtani, President of Qatar Modern Pentathlon Federation
Fahad Saad Al Qahtani, President of Qatar Modern Pentathlon Federation (QMPF), said his team had achieved a 'lot in the last few years' in promoting the sport of modern pentathlon.
Over the last two days, Doha hosted 36 athletes from 15 nations in competitions held at Al Shaqab and Qatar Foundation (QF) Recreation Centre.
"We started a few years ago but we have come a long way in promoting this beautiful sport," Al Qahtani said during a press conference attended by Dr H C Klaus Schormann, President of UIPM.
"We have achieved a lot. At the beginning we were just organizers as we were creating this discipline for riding fans in Doha. And now we are aiming for more than just organizing events. We thank Dr Klaus and the UIPM for their support the last few years," Al Qahtani said.
"We have the infrastructure. We have young students - male and female. Our objective is to promote the event. The present edition has been a success. Our team is working around the clock. They are exerting real efforts. We thank them, the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) and the volunteers who are pillars of our success.
"For us in Qatar, this sport really represents our culture. It's a legacy for our people. Equestrian is part of our culture. It represents what we believe in. This is what I think we should emphasize on during our events," he said.
When asked about having more events in the future, he said: "The modern pentathlon was introduced in Qatar 3-4 years ago. There's a special committee. The support is there from QOC and QF. The objectives are improvement of society. Spreading and promoting the sport means 5 federations have to coordinate."
He added: "We will continue to do this next year. We will have a new facility next year. This is a lifestyle sport. But we look at it from another side. We have to look at health issues. We will also look into this. This sport can help solve social problems and create a message on healthy living in a very good way."
Dr Schormann, President of UIPM, said: "I thank my friends here. It's has been a successful Olympic Games year and we are ready to close the season. We started our partnership with Qatar three years ago. We have enjoyed this partnership."
He added:"When we came here, we wanted to bring spirit of UIPM and the Olympic Movement. It has been a long season for the athletes. At the end of 2016, we want to enjoy wonderful moments. That's a special challenge.
"My thanks to athletes also. It is important never to forget the volunteers. Even at the Olympic Games, the volunteers are ever so important. We read articles about this event in the newspapers in Qatar. We see the logos behind us," he said.
“All athletes gave their all to reach the podium or achieve a good finishing place," Dr Schormann said.
