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Team Qatar’s track athletes to compete in their first heats on Friday
Tribune News Network
Rio de Janeiro
Team Qatar has been off to a thrilling start at the Rio 2016 Games and there's more excitement to come as the handball team, skeet shooters, and track & field athletes get into action in a bid for Olympic glory.
Qatar's handball team will next meet Tunisia on Thursday at 3.30 pm Doha time at Rio's Future Arena. The team had cruised to victory against Croatia on Sunday 30-23 but encountered stiffer resistance against reigning Olympic and world champions France on Tuesday, eventually conceding the match 35-20.
Friday will be one of the most exciting days for Team Qatar in Rio 2016 as yet. Skeet shooters Nasser al Attiyah, who won the bronze in London 2012 and is competing at the Olympics for a sixth consecutive time, as well as Rashid Hamad a veteran of 18 world championships and the Beijing 2008 Games will compete at 3.30 pm Doha time at the Olympic Shooting Centre.
Speaking ahead of the competition, Attiyah said,"As athletes we count down the days to Olympics. It is very different from any other championship in the world. We're doing our absolute best to prepare and we have been training intensively since our arrival in Rio on July 27. After winning the bronze medal in London 2012 I hope to win one of the medals here in Rio."
Making his Olympic debut, and marking Qatar's return to the Olympic weightlifting since 2008, Fares Ibrahim will compete in the Men's 85kg weightlifting event at 4 pm Doha time also on August 12. Ibrahim, 18, secured his Olympic qualification after snagging two bronze medals at the world junior championships in June 2016.
Commenting on his hopes for Rio 2016, Ibrahim said:"I'm concentrating and I'm aiming to achieve one of two things in Rio 2016 either win a medal or at least be one of the top six competitors. Human beings are infinitely powerful and I always remind myself of this when I compete if you truly believe you are capable of lifting the weight then you will."
Meanwhile, Team Qatar's track team will compete in their first heats of Rio 2016, with Musab Balla and Abubaker Haidar competing in the men's 800m between 4 pm and 4:37pm Doha time. This marks the second Olympic appearance for Balla after he competed in London 2012, and will be the first time ever Haidar takes to the Olympic track.
Haider is a recent graduate of Aspire Academy one of three Aspire Academy alumni competing in Rio 2016 the other two being high jumper Mutaz Barshim and hammer thrower Ashraf Elseify.
Speaking before the competition, the 19-year-old Haidar said:"Qualifying for Rio was an indescribable feeling and it gave me a big push to do the best I can to represent Qatar, my family and friends in the best way possible. My wish is to get to as far as I possibly can to the final. Once you get there, anyone has a chance to get a medal."
Also competing on Friday will be Team Qatar's Abdalelah Haroun, who will race in the 400m heats between 5am and 5.47am Doha time.
Haroun holds the world record for the indoor 500m race which he set in the 2015 World Championships and has been having a stellar year so far in the Diamond League.
Speaking ahead of the competition, Haroun said:"It is such a big thing to compete in the Olympics for the first time and I have to do my absolute best. In Rio, my hopes are to win a medal. My biggest competitor will definitely be LaShawn Merritt, but I've trained hard so I will give it all that I have."
To follow Team Qatar and show support and leave messages, fans can visit Qatar Olympic Committee's social media channels on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and follow the #YallaQatar campaign or the QOC website at www.olympic.qa
