Top officials from Qatar 2022 Local Organising Committee (LOC) presented World Cup Tournament Operation Master Plan (TOMP) to FIFA representatives at the first board meeting held here Wednesday.
LOC Chief Executive Officer Hassan Al Thawadi, Deputy CEO Nasser Al Khater and COO Sakis Batsilas outlined Qatar's vision for the 22nd edition of FIFA World Cup, to be staged in the Middle East for the first time.
The TOMP details Qatar's preparations and its unique hosting concept based on an compact World Cup.
The TOMP also included a presentation from the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC) on the development of stadiums, the progress on transportation network that will connect stadiums and other venues in Qatar.
Commenting on today's meeting, Al Thawadi said, "The first LOC board meeting is a significant milestone. It was an opportunity to demonstrate our operational preparations and ensure we are ready to deliver the tournament as early as possible.
"We are working every single day to deliver a unique tournament that will bring people in the Middle East together, while at the same time build bridges between East and West." FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke said, "We had a very constructive first LOC Board meeting and are pleased with the work accomplished to date by the LOC especially in delivering a first customized operational plan to the specifications of the host country.
 "As we have done with previous hosting partners, we will help find solutions that work best locally including considerations for beyond the event itself. Next important step will be for the LOC to provide FIFA with feasibility studies to identify the best number of venues to ensure perfect playing conditions for the teams. We aim to have a confirmation of dates, length of tournament and final number of stadia to be used by end of this year." Valcke was happy to note progress of work at one of the World Cup venues. "It was very encouraging to see yesterday the Al Wakrah Stadium construction site as well as the respective workers living facilities. I am no expert on these issues, but I can see progress is being made particularly with the standards introduced by the Supreme Committee related to 2022 infrastructure" Organisations such as Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and ILO have recognized these standards recently, he said, added that "it is vital for the Qatari authorities to continue to work on with labour experts to ensure the initiated measures on welfare standards are sustainably implemented for all workers in Qatar and not limited to 2022 projects." The Qatar 2022 LOC will focus on operational planning, tournament preparedness and co-ordinate with FIFA on all competition related matters.
The SC will continue to deliver all tournament-related infrastructure and coordinate with various government bodies to ensure all related projects are delivered to leave a lasting legacy beyond the tournament.
The LOC, SC and FIFA will work closely to deliver all the requirements to host a historic world cup in the Middle East for the very first time.
Regarding the International Match Calendar Task Force's recommendation to FIFA's Executive Committee to switch the 2022 World Cup dates to November and December, Al Thawadi said, "We are ready to host anytime depending on the wishes of the global football community."
Source: QNA