Doha 2016 officials outlined their plans at a press conference Friday, should Doha be selected host city for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.
The Peninsula reports that a new athletes village, a medic city, and a state-of-the-art sports stadium for the physically challenged is on the agenda.
Hassan Ali bin Ali, Chairman of Doha 2016 said, “we have pledged to build a state-of-the-art athletes village for the players and the officials. We built a brand new athletes village for the Asian Games in 2006 and we will do it again if we win the bid.
“Besides this, Doha will construct a new media city to host around 25,000 people from around the world. No other bidding city can match this pledge.
“The media city will be an exclusive area of use for the world’s news people. The media people will have easy access to all of our playing facilities through a (to-be-built) metro network linking the city and the venues for those attending the Games”, he said.
Qatar has a budget of QR300m to build “the world’s most modern playing facility for the physically challenged”.
Ali added, “we already have a great institute – the Shaffalah Centre – a unique place for the physically handicapped. We have pledged to build a new stadium that could be used for the Paralympic Games. The new facility will be built irrespective of what happens to our Olympic Games bid”. The government would fully fund the facility.
He said they were not thinking about making a profit on the Games. “What we want to do is bring the Olympic flame to millions of new hearts and minds in the Arab world. We are keen to build a new athletes village and then make proper use of it after the Games.
“You see, 70 per cent of our facilities are ready. That will tell you that we are making more than ready to host the Games. Basically we are looking at expansions in various ways. For example, the new stadium for the physically challenged will become part of the Shaffalah Centre. Doing such things add value to our bid. We have no intention of making money, no”.
Should Doha host the 2016 Games they would take place October 14 to 30 and the Paralympics would be scheduled from November 12 to 23.
By 2016 Doha should have more than 80,000 hotel rooms. A new airport is to be completed in 2009, and there will be a metro network as well as a further expansion of the port facilities, reports the Peninsula.
