The Sports Activities Department at Qatar University celebrated National Sports Day on Tuesday, 14 February, by organizing a wide range of activities on campus. The event was attended by QU officials, faculty, and students along with a large number of attendees from the general public.
These activities helped introduce the university’s sports activities to the community, spread and raise awareness of the importance of sports and their role in the lives of individuals and societies, and emphasize the role of Qatar University in the promotion of physical activity and healthy lifestyles within society.
In his speech, Dr. Hassan Al-Derham, President of Qatar University, said: “The National Sports Day has become a yearly national occasion to raise awareness on the importance of sports in the promotion of healthy lifestyle and the role it plays in the progress and prosperity of the nation. It has also become an occasion to celebrate the State of Qatar’s achievement over the past years in the field of sports and to carry on its legacy.”
Dr. Al-Derham added, "This year the National Sports Day comes less than two months after Qatar’s successful hosting of the mega sporting event, FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, for the first time in the history of the Arab and Middle East region, and presenting an exceptional version that amazed the whole world. The hosting gave us important lessons in terms of planning for the future and adhering to national values and traditions. The successful hosting of the World Cup is the result of clear and precisely defined goals, strong determination, high ambitions, detailed planning, and exemplary delivery.”
Asmaa Al-Naemi, Director of the Sports Activities Department, said: "To achieve one of the Qatar National Vision 2030 objectives to create a healthy and active society, the department's goal was set to spread health awareness and educate the local community about ways to lead a healthy lifestyle by participating sports activities starting from the individual to the family level and setting few challenges to promote physical activity.” She added, “Playing sports is not limited to professional players; playing volleyball, badminton, football, etc., between family members promotes a healthy and active environment. The sports day activities on campus were organized separately for general attendees and female students under the supervision of the administration.”
This year’s sports day activities included different team sports such as volleyball, football (mini-football league), badminton, and various fitness classes along with informative booths and interactive games.
Source: Qatar University