Qatar Olympic Committee Secretary General and Qatar Football Association President Jassim Rashid Al Buenain meets Qatar U23 football squad in Hangzhou yesterday.
Doha, Qatar: Beach volleyball duo Mahmoud Essam and Abdullah Nassim got Qatar’s Hangzhou Asian Games campaign rolling with a 2-0 victory over South Korea yesterday.
Beach volleyball, football and volleyball events kicked off yesterday in Hangzhou, but the multi-sport event proper will begin from September 23, with the opening ceremony also scheduled the same day.
Yesterday, Essam and Naseem were clinical as they eased past their South Korea opponents in their opening group fixtures. The duo are slated to face teams from Iran and Macau next.
Meanwhile, Qatar’s top beach volleyball pair Ahmed Tijan and Cherif Younousse will begin their defense of the gold medal today, as they take on the Indonesia pair.
Tijan and Younousse are third in the world rankings with 6,580 points, and will fancy their chances of retaining the gold they won in 2018 in Jakarta.
The football team will also be in action today as they face formidable Japan in their opening Group D match at the Xiaoshan Sports Center Stadium.
The U-23 squad – with a maximum of three senior players allowed in each squad – is coming off a successful run in the AFC U-23 Asian Cup 2024 Qualifiers in South Korea, where they won all three matches in the qualifying group.
Coach Ildio Vale will hope his team can maintain their recent form against Japan, who are one of the fancied teams to win gold.
Qatar also take on Palestine in the group stage, where the teams are divided into six groups. The top two teams from each group and the four best third-placed teams across all groups will progress to the round of 16.
Meanwhile, the Qatar volleyball team will face Thailand today. On the other hand, the sailing team began its preparations after the delegation arrived in China on Monday, as it aims to give the best possible performance despite the strong competition. The Qatari sailing team consists of Faris Al Bakri and Ahmed Al Mulla, who will be in action today.
Qatar has sent 182 athletes, who will take part in 27 sports. At the Jakarta-Palembang 2018 Asian Games, Qatar won 13 medals: 6 gold, 4 silver and 3 bronze.
