Qatar Swimming Association
Husain Al Musallam, who was elected as the new president of the international swimming federation (FINA) in June in Doha, returned to the city on Friday for a coordination meeting with local organizers of the 2023 FINA Aquatics World Championships.
The top Kuwaiti official met Qatar Swimming Association president Khaleel Al Jabir and others in an hour-long meeting at the Hamad Aquatic Centre, where different aspects of the mega event’s organisation were discussed.
“This meeting was primarily to discuss about preparations for the 2023 Worlds, based on the organisers’ fantastic plan. We now need to work together to deliver the event efficiently,” he told Inside Qatar in an exclusive interview.
“Doha has all capabilities to deliver the 2023 Worlds as the best-ever in history. All of Qatar’s facilities are in place, and they’ve the experience to host mega events. We just need to coordinate on the work as we move forward,” he added.
The official was pleased with the organisation of the ongoing GCC Aquatics Championship but said more work needed to be done by different countries.
“It’s great to see children from all Gulf nations, from the age of 11 to 24, take part in events and forge new friendships. This was a significant competition to have as it’s happening after a long break due to the pandemic,” he said.
“The pandemic has affected swimmers’ standards. It’s understandable why there’re not many Gulf records being broken. I hope this competition will act as a starting point for different swimming federations to move ahead in the coming days,” he said.