In line with its commitment to ensuring the safety of all its employees, athletes, sports organisations and the public against the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Qatar Olympic Committee’s (QOC) on Saturday announced a further extension of its suspension of all local sports events and activities in Qatar until April 14.

The QOC’s decision is a complementary move which comes in line with the preventive measures taken by Qatar to limit the spread of coronavirus by banning public gatherings following the recommendations of Ministry of Public Health and National Pandemic Preparedness Committee.

On March 14, QOC announced the initial suspension of all the sports activities and events until 29th of March and announced that sports activities of all age groups across the country have been suspended until further notice.

Some local sports events affected by the suspension include Qatar Cup Volleyball Final (March 24), School Olympic Program final (March 25) and Qatar Cup Basketball final (March 31).

Meanwhile, the Qatar Volleyball Association (QVA) decided on Thursday to postpone the last round of the senior men’s league and complete the remaining competitions for the season 2019-2020 in September before the new term.

A QVA statement said that in light of the current conditions due to the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and for the safety of all members of volleyball fraternity and the Qatari community, the board of directors decided to complete the Senior Men’s League, HH the Amir Cup, the Qatar Cup and the National Men’s Championship in September, said a Qatar News Agency (QNA) report.

It was also decided to cancel the cup competitions for various age groups and the rest of the beach volleyball season, the report added.

The QVA launched the campaign #For _ Qatar_stay_ home in support of the precautionary measures taken by the state to contain the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

QFA extends suspension of the league and other activities

The Qatar Football Association (QFA) has also announced that based on the circular issued by the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) it has decided to extend the suspension of all of their sports activities and the matches till April 14.

The first postponement period ends on March 29 due to the coronavirus, as the league stopped before round 18 and after the round 17 that concluded on March 7.

QFA decided to officially postpone the QNB Stars League matches for a specified period in consultation with the parties concerned, while all indications are that the league and the current season’s championships will be completed during the next period after reaching its final stages.

The club coaches in the Qatari league have developed special training programmes for players during the postponement of competitions, especially after coordination with the Qatar Stars League Foundation and in the presence of a representative of the Ministry of Health at a meeting held with the coaches to hear their proposals on training for teams, in light of the conditions of the spread of coronavirus which disrupts many or most of the activities worldwide.

International sports events put on hold

With sports activities suspended globally as the world battles the COVID-19 pandemic, some major international events scheduled to hold in Qatar have also been put on hold.

These events included: FIBA 3x3 Basketball World Tour (April 2-3), FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Cup series (March 18-21), Doha Diamond League (April 16 & 17), 2nd Qatar men's ITF World Tennis Tour (March 16 – 22), 1st Qatar ITF Junior Tennis Tournament (March 23-28), 2nd Qatar ITF Junior Tennis Tournament (March 30 – April 4), QSF Squash Open, Doha Junior Squash Open (March 11-14), Qatar Junior Squash Open (March 15-17), QSF Squash Open (April 4-8) and West Asia Rugby 15 (April 2-5).

For any queries, or concerns related to COVID-19 in Qatar, the public can contact a 24/7 hotline set up by the Ministry. The hotline number is 16000 and is toll-free.

Here's everything you need to know about the virus, including ways to protect yourself. 

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Cover Image: QOC