When it comes to the pinnacle of sport, the Olympics pretty much rule the roost. Dreams are made or shattered on a quadrennial basis, and 2016 is that year when the Olympics will transform the efforts of a select few into stardom. And every athlete, worth his or her salt, is trying hard to make it to Rio come August.


Qatar’s Abdulaziz al-Kuwari in action during the special stage at Doha Corniche yesterday.

Qatar’s Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah is one of them.
His last outing in the Olympics had yielded him a bronze medal in the men’s skeet event. But since London 2012, you could say that al-Attiyah has been a little pre-occupied with other things - like winning the WRC2 Championships in 2014 and the momentous Dakar Rally in 2015.
In 2016, al-Attiyah finished a brave second despite his Mini being slower than the Peugots that dominated the event and won the title.  


Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation president Nasser Khalifa al-Attiyah with the participants ahead of the start of the Qatar International Rally yesterday.

But this year, it’s all about the Olympics for the rally legend. During the recently concluded Asian Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Delhi, al-Attiyah could only finish 12th in his event. But Qatar’s Rashid Saleh Hamad and Vitaliy Dovgun earned quota places for Qatar, which means that al-Attiyah still has a chance to go to Rio. And the 45-year-old is planning to go ‘all guns blazing’ for that spot.
“I won’t be taking part in WRC2 or in any cross country rally. Except for 2-3 cross country races (including Sealine Rally because it’s in Qatar) and the Middle East Rally Championships, I will not be taking part in any motorsport event. This year it will be very quiet until the Olympic games. Because after the Olympics I can push again for motorsport,” said al-Attiyah during a press conference held for the 2016 Qatar Rally yesterday.
There are five world championship events in which al-Attiyah plans to take part to improve his shooting and get into prime form before the Olympics and earn that quota place. “I will compete in all these world events because if I don’t compete there’s no chance to get to the Olympics. Also it’s not good to take the quota place from the other shooters. But I need to show that I can compete in the next Olympics,” said the 45-year-old yesterday.
Qatar is hosting a world shooting championship in 10 days’ time and that will be the first pit stop for al-Attiyah. “In the next 10 days we have a Grand Prix in Qatar. There will be 300 shooters participating. This is for first time that we have so many taking part,” he said.  
“After that we go to Cyprus (Grand Prix & World Cup) and then we have Italy, Azerbaijan and also a trial event in Rio. I will do my best to take part in the Olympics again,” he added.
For the next couple of days though, al-Attiyah will be in familiar territory because he will have a steering wheel in hands rather than his rifle. He will be driving the Skoda Fabia in the Qatar Rally, the same car he was using in WRC2.
“It’s the first time I will be racing the Skoda Fabia in the Middle East. I tested it during WRC 2 in Spain and we like the car and we get factory support, from the Volkswagen group. I am quite happy to race here in Qatar again and would like to thank all the sponsors,” said al-Attiyah.  
From “Dakar to Delhi to Doha”, has been a tough ask even for the extreme athlete that al-Attiyah is but he promises to give it all in the Qatar Rally. “I am still tired. You need to have at least one month to recover. I have trained well and this is important to compete here in Qatar. I will try to do my best with the new car. I have lots of experience here.”
And there’s added motivation to win this 2016 edition. “I have a lot of experience in the Qatar Rally. We have won it 12 times. I hope to win again because this will be a new record for Middle East Championships.”
After that it’s back to cradling the gun and getting that Olympic place. Ready, steady, PULL!






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