Ice on desert soil: Qatar set to be face of curling in MENA
DOHA, March 21, 2018-ICE, broom and a granite rock, one wonders what they all have in common. but all these items put together make for an olympic sport called 'Curling' with over 500 years history dating back to 16th Century scotland. Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice towards a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles (it's like archery on ice).
Two teams, each with four players, take turns sliding heavy, polished granite stones, also called rocks, across the ice-curling sheet towards the house, a circular target marked on the ice.
Each team has eight stones, with each player throwing two. The purpose is to accumulate the highest score for a game; points are scored for the stones resting closest to the centre of the house at the conclusion of each end, which is completed when both teams have thrown all of their stones. A game usually consists of eight or ten ends. most importantly, how does this sport concern Qatar? Well, the Qatar Winter sport Committee has a thing or two to say about this.
Lajos belleli is the man tasked with the coaching and development of curling in the country. He is an accomplished curler who made over 200 appearances with the Hungarian national team, won the national championship seven times, and was one of the founders of the technical committee in his homeland. He was also coach of the Hungarian team. “We started the curling programme here almost three years ago. The QoC actually gave birth to this dream and it has been an interesting journey," belleli said.
The team also recently marked their first practice anniversary; amazingly, it was on February 29 2016 (which was a leap year).
Qatar was the first country from the MENA region to join the World Curling Federation a feat the Hungarian is proud to highlight. “This country is the face of the sport in the Gulf and we want to be a leader in the sport right here. one day, we hope to fly Qatar's flag in the olympics," he said.
An unusual sport with no local history, how did he get the players? “I went to the universities and asked, “do you want to do something cool?," belleli says.
Curling has no age limit. You can be 80 and still participate, and most importantly uphold the spirit of sportsmanship which is the main tenet of the sport.
Right now, the national team has 25 curlers, both male and female teams all Qatari, (between 18 and 38 years). The team uses the ice track at Villagio mall for practice, which isn't entirely an ideal curling venue. belleli says the QoC and the government are working towards building a facility for winter sports.
Last year in Australia, Qatar recorded its first international win against Kazakhstan. “I remember that moment. our skip (skip is the team captain and he/she directs the shots to be played) was in superb form and the team delivered. I think we got more attention and respect considering how far we have come in such little time," says belleli.
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