The 18th edition of the Asian Games will be held in the cities of Jakarta-Palembang from 18 August to 2 September and will see 222 athletes proudly represent Team Qatar. Indonesia will be the first country to host the second largest multi-sports event in two different cities.

The opening ceremony will be held on 18 August at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta, while the 37th General Assembly of the Olympic Council of Asia will be held on 19 August at the Mulia Hotel Indonesia.

Team Qatar will be represented by 20 National Sport Federations and will compete in 30 events and disciplines at the Asian Games 2018. The athletes will also compete in two new sports for the first time in Qatar’s Asian Games history – 3×3 basketball and air sports.

Showing his support to Team Qatar at the Asian Games 2018, Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) Secretary General Jassim Al Buenain said that they are committed to always support the National Sports Federations in delivering the appropriate environment for athletes to train and achieve excellence as this is a key strategic goal for QOC.

Qatar is a nation passionate about sport and we strongly believe in the power of sports to unite, inspire, empower and educate people of all ages and abilities. The 2006 Asian Games has been a catalyst for Qatar’s sports development. Hosting the games in Doha holds a special place in our hearts. Today we stand behind our athletes and confident that they will make us proud. We hope that their success will inspire young athletes in Qatar to follow in their footsteps and one day represent Team Qatar.’

The diverse team includes 29 females who will take part in exciting sports, from shooting to taekwondo. Team Qatar forms a strong team with over 890 previous achievements, from winning Olympic medals to claiming Asian champion titles. They are eager to return home with even more medals. Team Qatar will be led by Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, the President of QOC.

According to Al Buenain, the Asian Games is a great opportunity for  athletes to shine and gain wonderful experiences.

‘I am Qatar’ Campaign

Team Qatar athletes has received an outpouring of public support in response to a new ‘I am Qatar’ campaign recently launched across its digital platforms as part of the exciting build up to Asian Games 2018 Jakarta-Palembang. To celebrate Qatar’s continued emergence onto the world stage of sports, the inspirational ‘I am Qatar’ campaign was introduced by an energetic short film produced by Al Kass Sports Channels featuring some of the prominent Team Qatar athletes in different sports.

Speaking on the remarkable response to the ‘I am Qatar’ campaign, Sheikha Asma Al Thani, the Marketing and Communications Director at QOC, said they were hoping that the campaign will brings everyone together to support the athletes at the 2018 Asian Games.

Our athletes represent everything that Qatar stands for. We are extremely proud of them and we want them to feel the support of the entire community. Whenever they compete, they compete for all of us.’

Team Qatar competitions will begin with the handball team who are looking to defend their Asian Games 2014 title. The team will play against Malaysia in the preliminary round this Tuesday 13 August, five days ahead of the Opening Ceremony.

Fans can follow Team Qatar’s final preparations for the Asian Games 2018 on the social media channels and website of Team Qatar.  The ‘I am Qatar’ campaign video can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/XjdH9xqmq7M.