GCC ORGANIZING COMMITTEE

SHEIKH Hassan Bin Abdullah Al-Thani, the Vice-President of Qatar Fencing Federation, has been elected as the chairman of the organizing committee for the first Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) Fencing Tournament to be held in February 2003. The inaugural meeting of the committee was presided by Sheikh Saoud Bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, Secretary General of Qatar National Olympic Committee and President of Qatar Fencing Federation. It was also attended by Sheikh Hassan Bin Abdullah Al-Thani and Ali Yusuf, Chairman of the Kuwait Fencing Association, Saleh Faraj Sultan on behalf of Bahrain, and Qambar Mahmood Al-Maazin, and Tariq Ahmed Al-Naqabi from the UAE, besides several other dignitaries.

Welcoming all those present, Sheikh Saoud Bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani announced the formation of the organizing committee for the GCC Fencing Tournament. He said that the purpose of holding the tournament was to develop this sport in the GCC countries and have mutual interaction by exchange of expertise. It was decided to have Doha as the head office for the organizing committee for the next four years. Sheikh Hassan Bin Abdullah Al-Thani was elected as the Chairman of the committee, while Khalid Abudl Jabbar was named Secretary General. Ali Yusuf (Kuwait) and Qambar Mahmood Al-Maazin (UAE) were named members. It was also decided that Saudi Arabia and Bahrain may be requested to send their nominations to the committee. The next meeting of the committee is scheduled to be held in October soon after the Pusan tournament.

A schedule of tournaments will be announced for different age groups in preparation for the GCC tournament next year. The by-laws for the committee will be drawn up in keeping with international standards, and are subject to approval by the committee.