Gangneung, Korea, January 27, 2024: There was an unfamiliar curling country among the teams in the mixed doubles competition of the Winter Youth Olympic Games at Gangneung Curling Centre on Saturday afternoon: Qatar
The Gulf state was represented by Aldana Al-Fahad, 15 and Mohammed Al-Naimi, 17, in their Group B round-robin opener against Norway.
Even though they went down 15-0 over six ends, the Qatari duo believe it was a big step forward for themselves and for curling back home.
“Even though we lost the game, it doesn’t matter. We learned a lot of things and had fun. It was very nice. We really enjoyed it,” said Mohammed.
Mohammed and Aldana have been playing curling for only three months and found the experienced Norwegians much too skillful and strategic.
After dominating the opening end on Sheet A 3-0, Norway won the next five ends 2-0, 1-0, 3-0, 4-0 and 2-0 to close out the match 15-0.
The young Qataris will have plenty of time to improve, as they play the United States, Slovenia, Sweden and Ukraine over the next four days in the six-team round-robin Group B.
Mohammed said he started curling only three months ago at the suggestion of his cousin in Qatar, and he thought ice hockey and curling would be similar.
“When I saw curling for the first time, I could see it is a different game. I said that I would try for one week and, if I liked it, I would carry on. I really like the game and I am learning.”
Aldana took up the sport as her father has played professionally for five years. “It is ok. Even if we lose, we learn a lot of things. We learn how to focus and how to go straight on the line. I had a lot of fun,” she said.
The curlers practice at the Al Attiyah Arena ice rink in Doha under Hungarian coach Lajos Belleli and they vowed to continue to keep playing and keep improving so they would have more chances to represent Qatar on the international stage.
When asked if the pair would be playing at the 9th Asian Winter Games in Harbin, China in February 2025, Mohammed replied: “Inshallah, we need to be so we can enjoy and have fun and learn a lot more.”
