National Team in Slovenia for Asian Cup Preparation

Members of the Qatar National Triathlon Team have headed to Sloveniafor some valuable training and competition experience prior to the endof the European season and the start of domestic racing. This time theteam are joined by members of the development squad who, in experiencingthis kind of training camp environment for the first time, are layingthe foundations for future success in one of Qatar’s newest but fastestgrowing sports.

Their destination is Novo Mesto, a hub for elite cycling in a countrywhich is something of a sporting paradise – its tiny population iseasily outnumbered by trees, through which run extensive networks ofcycling and running trails. Lakes and rivers suitable for open waterswimming are also plentiful, the most famous of which is the picturesqueLake Bled.

This is the starting point of one of two competitions in which theteam will participate. While this Olympic distance event connects two ofthe country’s notable beauty spots with a 40km bike between Bled andBohinj lakes – swimming 1500m in the former and running 11km around thelatter. A week later, the second race is the sprint distance SlovenianCup, entirely within the capital city of Ljubljana. These races were tohave been in preparation for the Arab Cup in Morocco but, with thatevent cancelled due to Covid-19, the focus turns to building up for theAsian Cup in Doha at the end of November.

Speaking from Novo Mesto, the tour’s Administration Officer, Fahad AlGroon, told us, “For the first time we have identified some youngtalent to train with the senior team.”

“In doing this, we are building a future for our sport. Our seniorshave had some good results in the recent races in Egypt but they needmore experience and this has been hard to get in recent years. Bycombining some European triathlon with an intensive training camp, weexpect to see the entire team take a leap forward in the coming seasons.These are exciting times to be involved with this sport in Qatar”.

Qatar’s National Triathlon Team, represented by Fahad al Mohammed,Tamim al Kuwari, Mohamed al Kaabi, Abdulla al Kaabi, Abdulaziz al Jaber,Shaheen al Kaabi, Fahad al Kaabi and Abdulhadi al Maraghi are in NovoMesto from 18th August to 8th September, supported by Fahad Al Groon andcoach Mouhcine Rhaili with medical support from Mehdi Moussaoui.