Doha, 4 February 2024 - Qatar Swimming Association President and Director General of the World Aquatics Championships - Doha 2024 Khalil Al Jaber expressed his great happiness with the atmosphere of the opening ceremony of the tournament, which is hosted by the State of Qatar for the first time in the Middle East, with the participation of 2,600 male and female athletes representing 201 countries, and will continue until Feb. 18, 2024.
In his remarks to Qatar News Agency (QNA), Al Jaber added that the opening ceremony highlighted several messages that emphasize the role of sport in peace. It also demonstrated the Qatari identity and focused on the local environment and Qatari heritage, highlighting Qatar's ancient maritime history and the importance of water for the State of Qatar, in addition to the fact that the paintings mimicked the customs and traditions of Qatar and that they wanted the ceremony to be different from previous versions.
He pointed out that the tournament is proceeding in a distinguished manner in the various competitions, whether indoors or open water, and everyone is satisfied with the ongoing competitions. He added that they hope that the competitive atmosphere will be very exciting, and a group of champions and heroines will have the opportunity to provide the highest possible performance, and an enjoyable atmosphere for thousands of participants and fans.
Al Jaber concluded his statements to QNA by saying that the six competitions continue to show many distinguished numbers from all participating countries, as well as record the presence of new champions in various races and the atmosphere is wonderful. As for the Qatari participation, it will be present in the swimming competitions. He added that they hope for success for all swimmers in registering good participation and achieving satisfactory results for their ambitions.
The World Aquatics Championships - Doha 2024, which is being held for the first time in the Middle East, include 6 sports, 5 of which are Olympic: swimming, diving, water polo, artistic swimming, and open water swimming, in addition to high diving. Participants will have the opportunity to qualify for the Paris Summer Olympics 2024.
Doha is also set to host the World Aquatics Masters Championships 2024 from Feb. 23 until March 3, 2024.
The championship competitions will be held in three main locations: Aspire Dome, Hamad Aquatic Centre, and Old Doha Port, where Aspire Dome hosts swimming, artistic swimming, and water polo competitions, while diving competitions are held at Hamad Aquatic Centre, and open water swimming and high diving in Old Doha Port.
