Tourism boom spin-off

PLANS for a multi-million dinar high-speed rail network linking Bahrain to Qatar may happen sooner rather than later thanks to the ambitious Gulf state's bid to host the 2022 World Cup, writes Michael Casey.

FIFA inspectors had their first look at Qatar's rail plans, a 50 million passenger airport and a satellite city being built that will be home to 200,000 people and scores of hotels as it makes its pitch.

The infrastructure projects are part of $42.9 billion in upgrades the nation is planning whether or not the country wins the World Cup. Many projects, though, are being 'sped up' to ensure they are ready in time for the tournament and are being promoted to show that the nation - which some have derided as too small to host the event - will have the necessary transit links and adequate accommodations for the hundreds of thousands of visitors, thus providing a potential tourism boom spin-off for Bahrain.

"We're moving regardless," said Yasir Abdulla Al Jamal, who has helped put together the bid. "We are a small country but we have a lot of dreams, a lot of ambitions. We want to change the perception of FIFA and the world that the World Cup can't be held in a small country."

FIFA inspectors were in Qatar until last Thursday and also toured a specially-designed stadium with a solar-powered cooling system which would be installed in the 12 proposed stadiums. The cooling system is designed to keep temperatures at 27 degrees Celsius on the field and in the stands, far cooler than the 41 C average in June, July and August.

Qatar bid committee CEO Hassan Al Thawadi has said the technology can be expanded in the coming years to ensure that fan zones and training sites are also kept cool. Al Thawadi also promised the system would be carbon neutral because it depends on renewable energy sources.

The inspection team included six delegates, led by Chile Football Federation president Harold Mayne-Nicholls. Danny Jordaan, chief executive of the organising committee for the World Cup in South Africa, is also part of the delegation.

Qatar is the final stop on a tour of nine countries which are bidding to host the 2018 or 2022 World Cups. FIFA's 24-member executive committee will choose the winners and they will be announced on December 2.

Inspectors met with government officials and were given a presentation on a massive city that is planned from scratch several kilometers outside the capital Doha. Complete with four skyscrapers, a 1,400-boat marina, 37 residential towers, shopping malls and one of the World Cup stadiums, the Lusail project stretches for eight kilometers and is expected to be completed no later than 2020.

If Qatar is awarded the hosting rights, the surrounding Gulf States would be home to many of the World Cup visitors. The high-speed rail network, which reaches speeds of 350 kilometres per hour, means that visitors from Bahrain could reach Qatar in an hour.

Inspectors also met with Shaikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al Thani, the Minister of Internal Affairs, to discuss security arrangements in Qatar. They also discussed plans for a media venue that would be based in Lusail and is where most of the broadcasters would be based.