Lifters eye Olympics berths as Qatar Cup IWF GP opens

The second edition of the Qatar Cup IWF Grand Prix opened yesterday at the Women’s Indoor Hall at the iconic Aspire Zone.
The championship – which will take place from December 4 to 14 – is an Olympic Games Paris 2024 qualifying event.
According to the competition schedule released by the organisers, a total of nine Olympic gold medallists along with nine current world champions will feture in the Doha event.
Another 13 world record holders will also aim for the top in various weight categories over the course of the next 10 days.
The opening ceremony yesterday was headlined by Mohamed bin Youssef al-Mana, First Vice-President of the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC), President of the Qatar, Arab and Asian Weightlifting Federations.
Mohamed Hasan Jalood, President of the International Federation (IWF), and heads of the national federations were also present.
“We announce the opening of Qatar Cup IWF Grand Prix and wish all participants good luck,” al-Mana said at a low-key ceremony yesterday.
“We are honoured to have the presence of the Minister of Youth and Sports of the Republic of Iraq, Ahmed al-Mubarqa, and Taha bin Sulaiman al-Kishry, Secretary-General of the Oman Olympic Committee, and many other guests here,” he added.
Al-Mana announced that the Local Organising Committee (LOC) decided to stage a simple ceremony and cancel what would have been a glittering opening ceremony in solidarity with the Palestinian people, who are facing a brutal assault as a result of the Israeli bombing of Gaza.
In his speech, President of IWF Jalood yesterday extended his thanks and appreciation to the Qatar Weightlifting Federation and to the staffers in the LOC ‘for putting things together in brilliant fashion ahead of the start of the popular competition’. This is the fifth of seven qualifying competitions for weightlifters hoping to compete at the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024.
The male lifters will compete in the following weight categories: (61kg - qualifies for the Olympics, 73kg - qualifies for the Olympics, 89kg - qualifies for the Olympics, 102kg - qualifies for the Olympics, 55kg, 67kg, 81kg, 96kg, 109kg, +109kg).
The female lifters will compete in the following weights (49kg Olympic qualifier, 59kg Olympic qualifier, 71kg Olympic qualifier, 81kg Olympic qualifier, +81kg Olympic qualifier, 45kg, 55kg, 64kg, 76kg, 87kg and + 87kg).
The IWF has named 35 of the best referees in the world who will officiate in the Doha competitions in which more than 400 male and female lifters are representing 108 countries, organisers said yesterday. The Grand Prix is expected to set new records with the participation of champions from around the world as Doha becomes a transit station for those eyeing the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Qatar’s Olympic gold medallist at the Tokyo Olympics Fares Ibrahim is scheduled to participate in the 102kg class.
Ibrahim has already qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Ibrahim qualified for the 2024 Summer Games when he featured in the World Weightlifting Championships held in Saudi Arabia in September.
A meeting of the Executive Office of the IWF was held yesterday morning when important decisions that were put on the agenda were approved.
More meetings will also be held in the coming days