Aspire organises table tennis tournament for differently abled as part of Ramadan Sports Festival
Doha, Qatar: Aspire Zone Foundation (AZF) organised a table tennis tournament for differently abled as part of the Ramadan Sports Festival.
The tournament, held in cooperation with Qatar Paralympic Committee, is the only one of its kind happening in Qatar during the holy month of Ramadan. 45 participants took part, who were divided into four various categories: hearing, Motor, vision and mental impairments.
Abdulrahman Al Naggar in our hearts
Prior to the start of the event, participants gathered to pray for Aspire Academy graduate Abdulrahman Al Naggar, who passed away in April.
Abdulrahman was one of the participants of the table tennis tournament last year, where he played an honorary match.
Salem Nasser won in the Motor impairment group, Mustafa Amin in the hearing disability group, Hamad Ali Al Marri from the visual disability team and Salman Al Sharshani in the mental disability group.
Chairman of the Organising Committee of the Aspire Ramadan Sports Festival, Abdullah Aman Al Khater, and the manager of the tournament, Hussain Al-Haddad, from the Qatar Paralympic Committee, awarded the winners.
Following the award ceremony, Noof Al Saffar, a member of the organising committee of the festival, said: “This event holds a special place in the heart of Aspire Zone after it became one of our fixed events for the Ramadan sporting calendar. As Aspire Zone, we are looking to engage all community members in sport, regardless of their skills and disabilities. I would also like to thank Qatar Paralympic Committee for their support and cooperation over the past few years. Finally, I would like to say that the doors of Aspire Zone are wide open for all, and especially members of the public with special needs.”
Al Haddad added: “We are seeking to engage more disabled players in the table tennis activities in the upcoming years.
"For the eighth consecutive year, we have organised a table tennis championship for disabled people, and this year's tournament is noticeable for the larger number of individuals participating. The vision loss team comprised of 14 players, the hearing disability group had 8 players, the mental disability group 12 players, the motor disability group came with 3 players and we welcomed 6 players who are in wheelchairs. In conclusion, I hope that in the years to come, we engage more and more disabled players in our table tennis activities,” he said.
At the Aspire Ladies Sports Hall, the Al Adaam won Women's Handball Championship, organised by AZF in cooperation with the Qatar Women's Sports Committee. Al Majd came second and the Hands Up team came third.
Maha Al Abd Al-Jabbar, Assistant Secretary of the Qatari Women's Sports Committee and Aisha Bu Jassum, member of the Organising Committee of the Festival, awarded the winners.
In Aspire Dome, Volley Beast secured first place in the men's volleyball tournament. Madina Doha came second, and Perfect Food was third.
Abdullah Aman Al Khater, Chairman of the Organising Committee of the Festival and Nasser Abdullah Al Hajri, Director of PR and Communications at AZF, honoured the winners.
Fitness Challenge for boys and girls and the hockey competitions also came to an end.
The men's football ended on Monday night, while the five-day men's basketball Competition has begun. The three-day women's basketball competition will begin on Tuesday.
This year, the Ramadan Sports Festival is sponsored by Saleh Al Hamad Al Mana Co, Aseel Water and EsQalar Sports.
