11.10.2008
POLL SHOWS OVERWHELMING SUPPORT IN QATAR FOR DOHA 2016 OLYMPIC BID
The population of Qatar has demonstrated overwhelming support for the Doha 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Bid.
In a recent opinion poll in Qatar, conducted by the independent international polling company Ipsos, 86% of people expressed their support for the Doha 2016 Bid.
When asked, 95% of respondents said that they were aware that Qatar was bidding to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2016 – and more than 80% of them also said they had an interest in sports and the Olympic Games in general.
More than 1,000 people were interviewed for the poll, which took place in November. Those questioned included both men and women, of all ages from 18 upwards. The survey covered both Qatari citizens as well as proportionate numbers of expatriates working in Qatar.
When asked about their feelings about Qatar’s sporting history to date, 81% said they felt proud of it. However, this pride in Qatar sports was also expressed by all the different groups of expatriates.
The vast majority of respondents said they believed that bringing the Olympic and Paralympic Games to Qatar would benefit the country as a whole. More than 75% said that they thought the Games would bring more tourists to Qatar, while almost 60% thought more jobs and more international exposure for Qatar would result from hosting the Games. Other key benefits mentioned included more infrastructure – both sporting and transport – and more hotels being built.
More than 50% of the people polled said they would attend some or all of the Games if they were hosted in Doha – and 55% of respondents said they would be happy to volunteer to help organise the Olympics in Doha.
Commenting on the results, Mr Hassan Ali Bin Ali, the Chairman of the Doha 2016 Bid Committee, said: “I am thrilled and touched by these huge levels of support for the Doha 2016 Bid.”
Mr Hassan added: “This level of awareness and support for our Bid is evidence of the Qatari population’s desire to welcome the Olympic world to an Arab country for the first time and to showcase our country’s progress.”
“The results of this poll have shown how the power of peaceful sport can unite our entire country, both native Qataris and expatriates. Recently, at the summit of GCC Heads of State in Doha, we saw how Doha 2016 can unite an entire region, with all the GCC leaders expressing their support and the support of all their citizens for our Bid.”
“So awarding Doha the 2016 Games would unleash the full power of the Olympic Movement and peaceful sporting competition to create understanding, hope and change that could then unite this entire region with the rest of the world.”
“Doha 2016 could really be an Olympic and Paralympic Games that change the world. And, as our Bid messages says, that would indeed be a reason to ‘celebrate change’.”