Qatar to go ahead with event

War or no war, organisers will still hold the fourth round of the President's Cup F2 Powerboating Championships at the end of this month in Qatar.

Abdul Salam Fayrooz, the promoter of the F2 Powerboat Championships, told Gulf News that he had conducted a series of meetings with Qatari officials concerning the race. The Qatar round will be held either at the Corniche area or at Al Khor in Doha on March 27-28.

"The race will go on, whether there is a war or not," Fayrooz stated.

"Too many activities are getting stalled due to the looming possibility of a US-led strike on Iraq. We cannot allow this to stop us from hosting a race series which is being dedicated to President His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. We have to go ahead with the Qatar round and ensure that we send the right signal to the world," Fayrooz insisted.

The UAE's Thani Al Qamzi of the Emirates F2 Team is presently leading the championship after three rounds held in Fujairah, Abu Dhabi and Oman.

This year's championship has a full field of 17 drivers, all of whom have confirmed their presence for the fourth round in Qatar. Prominent among them are racers from Norway, UK, Sweden and Malaysia.

"All the overseas drivers have confirmed their presence for the Doha round along with their families. This is fantastic news for us and it will give us all the encouragement needed to go ahead with the racing," Fayrooz said.

Last week, the race promoter was in Doha meeting with Sheikh Hassan bin Jabber Al Thani, Vice-President of the Qatar Water Sports Federation (QWSF) to sign the race agreement chalking out the racing programme. "We had a formal announcement of the race in Doha and this was attended by all the Qatari and foreign media there," Fayrooz informed.

"The Qatar Government has given us all the backing and assured us of all the support needed to make the race a huge success," Fayrooz said.

He predicted a tough race in Qatar this year as most of the drivers have made necessary adjustments to their boats after the first three rounds of the championships. "It will be a strong finish and victory is not going to be easy for the leaders," Fayrooz predicted.