In the last 25 years, Qatar’s sporting landscape has changed dramatically. Through witnessing national teams in football, soccer, basketball, handball, and tennis, among other sports, in the 1980s and early 1990s, Qatar transformed the sports industry on a massive scale to make Doha the world’s sports capital.
Since the mid-1990s, there has been a significant shift in the sporting scene. Qatar, on the other hand, put together a careful schedule while vying to host the 2006 Asian Games. The bid was won in late 2000, and the Qatari capital spent the next half-decade constructing sports facilities that would represent the country for at least the next five decades.
Doha proceeded to organize top international events during this period, such as the Qatar Open ATP Tour event, which was first held in January 1993 and won by German tennis legend Boris Becker. In the same way, the Qatar Masters, a European Tour golf event, debuted in 1998 and has been held every year since. Any of the best golfers to win the Qatar Masters include Andrew Coltart, Paul Lawrie, Adam Scott, Ernie Els, Henrik Stenson, Retief Goosen, Thomas Bjorn, and Sergio Garcia. The Qatar Masters was first held at the Doha Golf Course, but for the past two years, it has been held at the brand new Education City Golf Course.
Following the success of the Qatar Open in 2001, the Qatar Tennis Federation (QTF) organized operations to introduce the continent’s first women’s WTA Tour event, which was won by Swiss star Martina Hingis. When the first edition was held at the legendary Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex, record crowds poured through the turnstiles. Some of the players who have captured the tile in Doha are Monica Seles, Anastasia Myskina, Maria Sharapova, Justin Henin, Victoria Azarenka, Simona Halep, and Petra Kvitova. Last week, the Qatar Open, which is funded by Total, concluded its 19th edition, with Kvitova winning her second title in Doha.
The Qatar Cycling Federation jumped in on the groove as well, staging the hugely successful Tour of Qatar races for men in 2002 and women in 2006. Tom Boonen, a Belgian rider, has won the race five times, while Mark Cavendish, a British rider, has won two times. During the women’s series races in Qatar, Kirsten Wild shone brightly, winning six Tours. The Tour of Qatar was held for 15 years in a row before its last edition in 2016.
The region’s first-ever MotoGP fight was held at Losail International Circuit, which was established in a record-breaking period of nine months. The first event was held in 2004, and the legendary venue now hosts the first MotoGP race of each season, which is held under the lights. WorldSBK races, as well as a variety of other two-wheel and four-wheel competitions, are held on a daily basis at the same venue. Valentino Rossi, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Marequez, and Andrea Dovizioso are among the winners.
Since the very first edition of the Doha Diamond League in 1997, track and field have been a staple of the Qatari sporting calendar. Qatar has been the delighted host of the IAAF’s premier series at the beginning of every season since then.
Doha organized the 15th Asian Games in December 2006, bringing together the best and largest multi-disciplined sporting event in the world. Doha hosted over 10,000 athletes, politicians, and media for the two-week sporting event. With a total of 32 medals, Qatar came in 9th place in the medals table.
The largest event, the FIFA World Cup 2022, will take place next year. It will be a month-long affair that is projected to attract over a million people to the region’s first World Cup. Qatar has designed and used four World Cup stadiums since winning the bid in December 2010: the Khalifa International Stadium, Al Janoub Stadium, Ahmed Bin Al Stadium, and Education City Stadium. Later this year, four more stadiums are scheduled to be finished and available for use.
Qatar’s desire to host sporting events will continue after Qatar 2022, as it has scheduled and intends to organize a number of other events, including the FINA Swimming World Championships in 2023.
Doha re-bid for the Asian Games in December and was awarded the rights to host the 2030 edition following an Olympic Council of Asia vote in Muscat, Oman. Qatar has also sent a proposal for the Asian Cup football tournament in 2027.
Qatar has recently reaffirmed its commitment to staging the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the country has every chance of putting on a dazzling show thanks to its extensive experience hosting world-class events.