CELEBRATING QATAR NATIONAL SPORTS DAY WITH LOCAL DC YOUTH
Every year, the second Tuesday of February marks Qatar National Sports Day (QNSD). The national holiday was established in 2012 with the main objective of promoting sports and a healthy lifestyle among its population. This goes hand-in-hand with Qatar National Vision 2030. QNSD is celebrated throughout Qatar and at all of Qatar’s foreign missions across the globe. This year’s celebration was held on February 11th. In the United States, QNSD was celebrated in New York City, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC. In Washington, DC, the Embassy of the State of Qatar partnered with QatarAmerica Institute, the Washington Spirit, DC United, the Washington Redskins, and the National Children’s Museum. They celebrated QNSD with the theme “Futbol Meets Football.” This year’s celebration brought together 400 students from the DC area to learn about America’s and Qatar’s most popular sports, healthy habits, and other fun activities.
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2020 Annual Report
DC United showed off some tricks and taught some of the fundamentals of soccer to the visiting kids. The Washington Spirit joined in by organizing scrimmages with the students in a mini soccer pitch. The Washington Redskins set up an obstacle course and taught the children how to throw the ball and kick field goals.
Ambassador Meshal bin Hamad Al Thani hosted a VIP reception with guests that included former and present Redskins players, Washington Spirit players, U.S. Olympian Ibtihaj Mohammed, Mayor Muriel Bowser, and Dept. of State Deputy Assistant Secretary for Arabian Peninsula Affairs Tim Lenderking.
The Embassy of Qatar had virtual reality headsets so the students could “step inside” Lusail Stadium, one of the venues that will host games at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Qatar-America Institute had a station that taught the children about Qatari culture and traditional Qatari games. The two featured games were Carrom and Teela, which are both popular games in Qatar. Carrom is a “strike and pocket” table game played in South Asia and the Middle East. It combines elements of chess, billiards, and shuffleboard. Teela translated to English as “marble balls,” is one of the oldest known games and played all around the world, including in the United States.
The handout that was created for the event so that guests could learn more about the traditional games of Qatar.
@QatarAmerica | qataramerica.org
