IHF Praises Qatar for “Impressive” Preparations for the upcoming 24th Men’s Handball World Championship

Doha, Qatar: The President of the Qatar 2015 Organising Committee proactively initiated a meeting to transfer and hold the regular meetings in Switzerland at the headquarters of the International Handball Federation (IHF), wherethe Qatar 2015 Organising Committee and the IHF have met this week. This is part of a series of meetings to provide progress updates of the preparation for the 24th Men’s Handball World Championship.

The Qatar 2015 meeting was headed& led by H.E. Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, President of the Qatar 2015 Organising Committee and Dr. Hasan Mustafa, President of the IHF. The Qatar 2015 delegation included Ahmed Al Shaabi, Vice President of the Qatar 2015 Organising Committee; Dr. Thani Abdulrahman Al Kuwari, Director General of the Qatar 2015 Organising Committee; and Mohamad Jabor Al Mulla, Assistant Director General of the Qatar 2015 Organising Committee, in addition to the committee heads for Qatar 2015. The meeting was also attended by Amal Khalifa, Managing Director of the IHF and Patrick Strub, Competition Director.  The meeting was to discuss the progress made to date in preparation for the major sporting event.

The meeting focused on the steps taken so far in advance of the Championship in 2015, and outlined the headway made in developing venues and generating excitement about the major sporting event. The IHF expressed their confidence that the event will be a truly exceptional one, as a result of the on-going efforts of the Organising Committee and the warm support of the people of Qatar.

During the meeting, H.E. Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani assured the IHF that Qatar 2015is working hard to ensure it meets the international standards required for the sport of handball, and to showcase the image of Qatar as a prime venue for hosting major sports events. H.E. Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani also presented a distinctive new and modern design along with a 3D model for the new Championship Cup reflecting and symbolising handball as a gesture from Qatar2015 Organising Committee. This shows how keen Qatar2015 Organising Committee is to provide a legacy for handball and the IHF, as the cup hasn’t changed over the past fifteen years in the history of the sport. In addition, the IHF approved this important step in the history of handball and has agreed on the final design of the 24th Men’s Handball World Championship Cup.

They also discussed the arrangements in place for the 17thAsian Clubs’ League Championship, which will take place at Al Sadd Sports Hall from 29 November to 11 December 2014.

Organising the 17th Asian Clubs’ League Championship will deliver a second test tournament, this time at the new Al Sadd Sports Hall, which will be one of the main venues for Qatar 2015. Earlier this year, the Organising Committee saw good results from hosting the IHF Super Globe 2014 in September at the Qatar Handball Association Complex, the first “test” tournament in the build-up to the 24th Men’s Handball World Championship in January 2015.

Al Sadd Sports Hall has been handed over to the Organising Committee by the contractors recently, and will provide a dynamic and exciting venue that can accommodate up to 7,700 spectators. In addition to the main stadium, Al Sadd Sports Hall provides two training grounds, in-line with recommendation of the IHF for host venues.

During the meeting in Switzerland, Dr. Hassan Mustafa praised the organising committee, under the guidance of H.E. Sheikh Joaan, for their on-going work to make the 24th Men’s Handball World Championship a great success, and expressed his confidence that Qatar will organise a truly world-class event.

The meeting also reviewed the on-going development of the third major venue for the Championship, the Lusail Multipurpose Hall, which will soon be complete and ready for handover to the Organising Committee. All three venues – the Qatar Handball Association Complex; Al Sadd Sports Hall and Lusail Multipurpose Hall – will provide an incredible visitor experience during the Championship that will take place in Doha from 15th January until 1st February 2015.

Dr. Hassan Mustafa thanked the Qatar 2015 Organising Committee for their efforts to keep the IHF informed and for their cooperation and support in organising a successful event.