Qatar to bid for 2036 Summer Olympics

Qatar confirmed it will bid for the 2036 Summer Olympics, trying to become the first Middle Eastern nation to host one of the world’s biggest sporting events.

The field for the Olympic and Paralympic Games is likely to be competitive, with Istanbul, the Indian city of Ahmedabad, Nusantara in Indonesia and Chile’s capital of Santiago all bidding too.

Qatar, one of the world’s richest nations thanks to its abundance of natural gas, said it’s well positioned to hold the roughly two-week event in its capital, Doha, with 95% of the required sports infrastructure already in place.

It may also be helped by its hosting of the 2022 men’s football World Cup, which was widely seen as a success, with fans and journalists largely praising the organization of the tournament.

The move “reflects a national vision that sees sport as a driver of development and a platform for promoting mutual understanding and peace among nations,” said Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, president of the Qatar Olympic Committee.

Qatar spent around $300 billion on stadiums, hotels, roads and a new metro in Doha in the run up to the World Cup. The city will hold the 2030 Asian Games and can use some infrastructure from that for the 2036 Olympics, the Qatar Olympic Committee said.

Like other Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Qatar has used sporting events to bolster its soft power and attract tourists.

Geopolitically, Qatar is a key ally of the US in the Middle East and mediates in many world conflicts, including the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

The next summer games will be hosted by Los Angeles in 2028 and Brisbane, Australia, in 2032