By Joey Aguilar

 

Dozens of skateboarders and BMX bikers fascinated a large number of spectators yesterday at Katara – the Cultural Village with their stunning acrobatics on concrete steps and bike ramps.

Farhan al-Sayed, founder and patron of Qatar Extreme Sports (QES), the event organiser, told Gulf Times that the popularity of such sports was increasing in the country.

“This leads them into a healthy lifestyle and keeps them away from all the gadgets of the world which we are so much addicted to,” he said.

Al-Sayed has been in the forefront of promoting and organising numerous sporting events in cycling, skateboarding and BMX biking throughout the year.

He also supports cycling races in Doha which attract cyclists from expatriate communities and other GCC countries.

As the son of the first cycling champion of Qatar, he said he was motivated to support “anyone on wheels.”

QES and its members have been using social media such as Facebook to popularise skateboarding and BMX biking in the country.

Al-Sayed noted the increasing number of players was evident in the rising sales of equipment.

“People will buy but they want to know where to go and use it. I think we have the means of doing it,” he added.

The competition at Katara yesterday was part of the “Run the World” festival, coinciding with the Qatar National Day celebrations.