Doha 2020 Olympic Bid Panel Unveils User-Friendly Plan

Doha, February 20 (QNA) - The Doha 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games Bid Committee Monday unveiled its plans to win from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) the rights to host one of the most accessible, athlete, spectator and media personnel-friendly Summer Games in modern history. The bid details were announced by Doha 2020 Vice Chairman and General Secretary of the Qatar Olympic Committee HE Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani; Technical Bid and Project Management Deputy CEO Fahad Juma who also led the process to compile Doha's Applicant File and at a media conference held at the Aspire Torch Tower here. Qatar's ace marksman and four-time Olympian Nasser Al Attiyah and promising young swimmer Nada Mohammed Wafa Arkaji supported the Doha's 2020 bid the country's top executives' endeavour to bring the world's top most sports event in their respective address to the packed gathering. Speaking at the unveiling of Applicant File, HE Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said, "I am delighted to present the contents of the Doha 2020 Applicant File on behalf of the whole region, as shown by the support we have received from the leaders of every Gulf Co-operation Council nation and all of the National Olympic Committees that participated at the 2011 Arab Games. This is a bid which offers a great opportunity not only for Qatar and the Middle East, but the entire Olympic Movement. "We are presenting a Games plan that dovetails perfectly with the significant investment Qatar is already making in sports facilities and essential infrastructure over the next few years as part of the country s National Vision 2030. Our focus on utilizing existing venues and those already planned and budged for means that we can have certainty in delivering an accessible and low-cost Games in 2020 if we are granted this honour. Addressing the gathering Fahad Juma, said, "Doha 2020's accessible five zone hosting plan will deliver an average travel time for all athletes and media from the Games Centre of no more than 21 minutes to every single competition venue. Our plans for transport, accommodation and sport venues together with our affordable ticket pricing policy also mean that spectators will be able to watch several events in a day, making Doha 2020 a truly 'fan friendly' Games. "Our new $21 Billion metro system will link to 78% of the sports venues and 50,000 hotel rooms and serviced apartments within 15km of the majority of Games venues will be ready ahead of 2020. All these developments are happening irrespective of whether we are granted the honour of hosting the 2020 Games, continued Fahad Juma. "Our legacy planning for the venues is already well advanced and we are very proud that we are putting in place facilities that will benefit the whole region, including a High Performance Training Centre for female athletes. It will be a real boost for girls and women who want to become elite competitors." Doha 2020 CEO Noora Al Mannai said, "We have also put a heavy focus on legacy. Our aim is to create a legacy for sport in the entire region empowering a new generation of girls and boys to become active through sport. We want to inspire change, create sporting and commercial opportunities for the Olympic Movement and build bridges of understanding between the region and the international community." Qatar s most accomplished Olympian, Nasser Al Attiyah, who is scheduled to appear in his 5th Olympic Games at London 2012, in his address to the assembly said, "I believe that Doha 2020 will set a new benchmark for Olympic Host Cities and the experience of athletes. The location of the athletes village, the fast travel times between venues, and the quality of the facilities really stand out for me. The plans unveiled today would provide the single biggest boost to sport in the region we have ever seen." Member of the Qatar national swimming team Nada Mohammed Wafa Arkaji, "Sport has changed my life and I know that if the Games were to come here, many more young lives would be changed for the better. To swim at Doha 2020, here in Qatar in front of my own supporters, would be special beyond words. Not just for me, but for every aspiring young girl and boy who wants to take up sport in the Middle East." (QNA)