28 Mar 2016
Doha, 28 March 2016. From March 24-26, 100 top gymnasts from 33 countries competed in the ‘9th Artistic Gymnastics World Cup’ at the Aspire Dome. The event, that was organised by the Qatar Gymnastics Federation and co-sponsored by Aspire, gave the athletes a great opportunity to prepare for the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio, while Qatar’s Ahmed Al-Dayani also impressed with a stunning performance, reaching the pommel horse final.
“I am quite happy that I could qualify for a final at this prestigious competition”, the 23-year-old commented on his 7th place, admitting that the good result came as a bit of a surprise. “I was coming back from being injured and the competition at this tournament gets stronger every year. You can see that the popularity of the sport in Qatar is constantly growing and the huge number of spectators speaks for itself. It’s great to compete in front of such an enthusiastic crowd.”
With Al-Dayani’s strong result and Farah Mahmoud qualifying for the final of the women’s uneven bars event, Ali Al-Hitmi, President of Qatar Gymnastics Federation, was thrilled with the performances of his athletes. “Results like these are a big success for the entire Federation because competing with the world’s best gymnasts and finishing among the top competitors is not an easy task.”
“The Qatar Gymnastics Federation is deeply committed to ensuring the growth of gymnastics in the country and supporting the vision of the Qatar Olympic Committee in bringing the world together through sport. We are prepared and looking forward to hosting the 8th edition of the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in 2018”, Al-Hitmi stressed. Gymnast Ahmed Al-Dayani said he is also optimistic about the future of the sport in Qatar: “I believe that gymnastics has developed a lot in recent years thanks to the efforts made by our Federation. Organising events like this helps put gymnastics into the spotlight.”