DOHA: A ‘special’ opening ceremony will kick off the proceedings on day one of the 2016 Doha Open Championships at Katara today, it was announced yesterday.
The three-day event is being organised by Qatar Boxing Federation (QBF).
The event has been planned to attract youngsters to the sport, QBF President Yousuf Ali Al Kazim said yesterday.
“Every day the competitions will start at 6:00pm. We hope fans will get to see good contests from new boxers,” Kazim said.
Last week, Kazim said QBF had been getting inquiries from youngsters interested in playing the sport seriously.
“When we got so many inquiries, we felt that we must host an event for those wanting to take up boxing,” Kazim added.
The event has been planned at a special ring that has been set up between the beach front and the amphitheater at Katara.
“See, we have two simple yet very important requirements that the amateur boxers must fulfil - one, they should be medically fit for the sport and second, the new boxers should have some scale of boxing skill to compete against another boxer. We have registered boxers who have met both requirements,” Al Kazim said.
“It is going to be an open-air ring. We know so many tourists and visitors are present at Katara any day of the week. This venue would be easily accessible to all sports fans,” Al Kazim said. “We will have a good mix of amateurs and pro boxers.
“The good ones may get a chance to compete against top Qatar boxers,” he said.
“Obviously we don’t want to pitch amateurs against top pros but we will keep on eye on an athlete who could go all the way,” Al Kazim said.
The three-day event is open to all residents of Qatar and anyone above the age of 17 can feature at the event, according to Al Kazim.
Al Kazim said Qatari referees will officiate during the event in a plan devised to boost the quality of match officiating.
QBF will stage the Qatar International Boxing Championships in May.
It may be recalled that Doha last year played host to more than 260 boxers from over 50 countries at the October 8-18 AIBA World Boxing Championships 2015 at Hamad Al Attiya Arena.
“Our boxers are better than their counterparts in the region but not superior to the ones on the international stage,” Al Kazim said last week.
“But competing at different events and by attracting youngsters to the sport, our boxers will become better,” Al Kazim said.
“We are developing boxing as we go along.”
The Peninsula
