HH the Heir Apparent Keen to Employ Qatari Talents in ADLQ - Al Sayrafi

Doha, December 10 (QNA) - Under the directives of HH the Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, President of Qatar Olympic Committee, the Anti-Doping Lab Qatar (ADLQ) relies heavily on Qatari talents to carry out its work, said the ADLQ General Manager Dr Mohamed Al Sayrafi. Al Sayrafi expressed at the same time his optimism to see the laboratory accredited by the International Anti-Doping Agency by November 2014. Answering a question by Qatar News Agency (QNA) during a press conference with Dr. Mohammed Ghanim Al Ali Maadheed, the ADLQ Chairman Board of Trustees, and Olivier Rabin, scientific director of the World Anti-Doping Agency: Al Sayrafi said: "We have dispatched nine Qatari technicians for training courses abroad. Four of them have joined ADLQ and the rest will join after one month." "We have also foreign expertise whose service is key to our work for the time being. The Lab director who founded the Athens Olympic Laboratory is working with us to qualify Qatari cadres through local training and strong programs," he said. The ADLQ General Manager said that training period for Qatari technicians takes between two and three years, and that they are dispatched to the University of Malaysia for Science, as well as Barcelona and Portugal laboratories. ADLQ Chairman Dr. Mohammed Ghanim Al Ali Maadheed hailed the unlimited support by the GCC leaders, as well as regional associations to Qatar's initiative to set up this laboratory, pointing out that this support contributed indirectly to bring this major edifice to light. The Anti-Doping Lab Qatar is regarded by the World Anti-Doping Agency as a regional laboratory for Western Asia, Al Maadheed said, pointing out that obtaining accreditation for the Lab is a major challenge. "Our strategic objective for the time being is to get international accreditation," he said. (QNA)