Qatar's popular Schools Olympic Program to kick-off 8 October 2012



The Steering Committee met at the Qatar Olympic Committee headquarters to finalise arrangements for its 2012-2013 season, themed 'Sports and Investment', and delivered in partnership with Enterprise Qatar.

The steering committee also discussed a number of new sports that are under consideration, and selected tennis as 2012's newest addition.

The SOP will hold a teachers' technical meeting on September 19th to outline the activities and schedule of this year's edition for participating teachers, while also introducing them to the new SOP logo.

Khalil Al Jaber, Qatar Olympic Committee Sports Affairs Director, said: "SOP plays an important role in the social and sporting life of the participating schools as it promotes community spirit, a balanced healthy lifestyle and for this edition, emphasises the role that business plays in sports."

Mr. Al Jaber continued, "We have completed much of our preparation and are now ready to deliver a spectacular 6th edition of Qatar's premier schools sporting event, which we are confident will be the best yet."

This year's Schools Olympic Program, which will run from October 2012 to April 2013, begins on a high note as Qatar celebrates this summer's historical achievements at the London Olympics, where it won two bronze medals for Naser Al Attiyah and Moataz Barsham. Barsham was one of the participants in the SOP first season.

Held annually in Qatar since 2007, the SOP is a collaborative effort of the Qatar Olympic Committee, the Supreme Education Council, Qatar School Sport Federation and Qatar Paralympics Committee to engage the community in an active, healthy lifestyle and promote a sporting culture in Qatar, in line with the goals of Qatar's National Vision 2030.