Qatar said the rift with some fellow Gulf Arab states, which includes economic sanctions on Doha, has not affected its preparations to host the 2022 World Cup, and alternative sources for construction materials have been secured, according to Reuters.

In remarks carried by the Qatar News Agency, Ghanim al-Kuwari, executive director at the committee overseeing preparations for the World Cup, said the committee had completed around 45% of the work in accordance with plans.

Soccer's governing body FIFA said last week it was in "regular contact" with the 2022 World Cup organising committee of Qatar, after Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE, along with Egypt, severed ties with Doha.

The 2022 World Cup is the centrepiece of a carefully crafted strategy to project Qatar onto the global stage via sport. In the run-up to the tournament, Qatar is scheduled to host multiple events across different sports, aimed at improving infrastructure and expertise.

"I can confirm to everybody that there is absolutely no impact on the progress of work in the Mondial facilities and that work is proceeding normally," said al-Kuwari.

Most of the construction materials needed for building World Cup stadiums had been coming by land through Saudi Arabia, a route now blocked, but al-Kuwari said alternative suppliers have been organised.

"We have actually organised alternative sources from other areas in order that the work on the project is not impacted."

He said while some goods had come by land, most materials were coming by sea, adding that some materials were being locally made.

Hamad Port in Doha was bustling with activity this week, with ships bringing in food supplies as well as building materials for construction projects, including World Cup stadiums and a Metro line running alongside highways that stretch out of Doha.

* IOC hopes Qatar row won't affect Gulf sports development

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) yesterday said it hoped the diplomatic and economic boycott of Qatar by its Gulf neighbours would not affect sports development in the region.

Qatar is among the leading investors in world sport, preparing to host the 2022 football World Cup and the 2019 world athletics championships among other top events it is set to stage in the coming years.

"In the world of sport, we remain politically neutral and continue our relationships with all the national Olympic committees (NOCs) in the region," IOC spokesman Mark Adams said.

"We hope for this even more, because all of the NOCs in the region are very active in Olympic sports in different respects and we appreciate especially how much is being contributed to sport development in the region," Adams told Reuters.

Teams across many sports, including top European soccer clubs such as Bayern Munich, regularly use Qatar’s state-of-the-art sports infrastructure for winter training camps.

HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani has been an IOC member since 2002.

"The IOC appreciates all this work very much and hopes that this crisis does not affect this co-operation," Adams said. "This is a political issue in the region. We are encouraging a dialogue on the political level so that the problem can be solved at this level."

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