15th Asian Games
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The 2006 Asian Games (), officially known as the XV Asiad or 15th Asian Games (, and commonly known as Doha 2006 (), were an
Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
n multi-sport event held in
Doha Doha ( ) is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor (city), Al Khor and Lusail, it is home to most of the country's population. It ...
,
Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...
, from December 1 to 15, 2006, with 424 events in 39 sports featured in the games. Doha was the first city in its region and only the second in
West Asia West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenian ...
(following
Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...
in
1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...
) to host the games. The city will host the games again in
2030 Predicted and scheduled events * January 1 – 1934 in literature, Books, 1934 in film, films and other works published in 1934 will enter the public domain. * February 1 – February 17 – The 2030 Winter Olympics is scheduled to be held ...
. It was the first time that all 45 member nations of the Olympic Council of Asia took part in this event. Also,
Eurosport Eurosport is a group of pay television networks in Europe and parts of Asia, owned and operated by Warner Bros. Discovery through its WBD Sports unit, it operates two main channels—Eurosport 1 and Eurosport 2—across most of its territorie ...
broadcast the event, marking the first time that the event was broadcast outside the continent. 21 competition venues were used for the Games including the newly constructed Aspire Indoor Sports Complex. The opening and closing ceremonies of the Games were held at
Khalifa International Stadium Khalifa International Stadium (, , ) is a multi-purpose stadium located in Doha, Qatar, around west from the centre of Doha. Its ground comprises a running track and a Pitch (sports field), grass pitch. Opened in 1976, the stadium was named af ...
. The trampoline discipline of gymnastics, as well as chess and triathlon made their debut at the Games. The final medal tally was led by
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, followed by
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
and
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
.
Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...
finished in ninth place. Tajikistan,
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
and United Arab Emirates won their first ever Asian Games gold medals. 7 world and 23 Asian records were broken during the games, while South Korean swimmer Park Tae-hwan was announced as the
most valuable player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...
.


Bidding process

Doha, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur and New Delhi submitted their formal bids by the deadline 30 June 2000. Prior to the voting, evaluation committee of the OCA, headed by the then vice-president of the association Muhammad Latif Butt inspected Doha on 13 and 14 July 2000, New Delhi on 15 and 16 July 2000, Kuala Lumpur on 17 and 18 July 2000, and Hong Kong on 19 and 20 July 2000. On November 12, 2000, voting for the 2006 venue took place during the 19th Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) General Assembly held in
Busan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...
,
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
. The voting involved the 41 members of the
Olympic Council of Asia The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) is a sports governing body, governing body of sports in Asia, currently with 45 member National Olympic Committees. Talal Fahad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah was elected as President of the OCA on 8 July 2023. However, on 3 ...
and consisted of three rounds, each round eliminating one of the bidding cities. After the first round,
New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...
was eliminated, with only two votes. The second round of voting, with three remaining candidates, gave Doha as the result. Under the regulations of the OCA, a candidate which gains more than half of the available votes (at least 21 out of 41 votes) will automatically be selected as the host, and the remaining rounds of voting will be cancelled. When Doha gained 22 out of 41 votes this meant they were selected to host the 2006 Asian Games. Most of Qatar's votes came from the unanimous support from
West Asia West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenian ...
n countries. After the major upset, Malaysia and Hong Kong, China expressed their disappointment. Malaysia said that the selection of Doha was ridiculous and that the selection of Doha was influenced by Qatar's economic wealth.


Development and preparations


Costs

Qatar spent US$2.8 billion on preparing venues, including a major upgrade to the 50,000-seat Khalifa Stadium from its original 20,000-seat capacity and the construction of the Aspire indoor sports complex, the world's largest indoor multi-sports dome.


Volunteers

Volunteering programme of Doha 2006 Asian Games which began in July 2004 targeted 12,000 volunteers and over 30,000 applications were received. The volunteers wore a specific uniform and are grouped at the Uniform Distribution and Accreditation Centre at the
Al-Gharafa SC Al-Gharafa Sports Club () is a Qatari multi-sports club based in the Al Gharrafa district of Al Rayyan municipality. The club is best known for its football team, although it also has teams for other sports. The club was established on 6 June ...
.


Torch relay

The torch relay has been integral to the Asian Games since
1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the thir ...
. The plans for the Doha 2006 torch relay were revealed by the Doha Asian Games Organising Committee on 20 January 2006. It engaged EFM Global Logistics to handle all the logistics for the relay. The torch of the 2006 edition weighs 1.5 kilograms and is 72 centimetres tall. Its design was inspired by the curvaceous horns of the Arabian Oryx, featuring maroon and white colours which are the colours of the Qatari national flag. It symbolises the unifying spirit of competition and friendship throughout Asia. The relay itself started on 8 October 2006 with a brief ceremony at the Doha Golf Club where the torch was lit with the theme of "Flame of Hospitality". With the involvement of over 3,000 people, the torch crossed eight former Asian Games host cities and the four
Gulf Cooperation Council The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (), also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC; ), is a Regional integration, regional, intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental, political, and economic union comprising Ba ...
member states. The torch travelled back to Doha held by Sheikh Joan Bin Hamad Al-Thani, and the journey around the city itself started on 25 November 2006 and lasted until the opening ceremony of the Games. The first stop was in
New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...
, the birthplace of the Asian Games on 11 October 2006 where the torch's flame was fused together with the Eternal Asian Games Flame that burn at the
Dhyan Chand National Stadium The Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, commonly known by its former name National Stadium, is a field hockey stadium in New Delhi, India. The stadium is named after former Indian field hockey player, Dhyan Chand. It served as the venue for th ...
. During the fourth stop in
Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...
on 21 October, the torch's flame was fused again but now with the Peace flame that burns at the
Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park is a memorial park in the center of Hiroshima, Japan. It is dedicated to the legacy of Hiroshima as the first city in the world to suffer a Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, nuclear attack at the end of World War II, and to the memories ...
. In total the relay passed through 13 countries and 23 cities, visited several landmarks such as
Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal ( ; ; ) is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal Empire, Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his belo ...
and the
Great Wall of China The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand ''li'' long wall") is a series of fortifications in China. They were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against vario ...
along its way to Qatar. The relay, which totaled a distance of 50,000 kilometres in 55 days, was until today, the longest in the history of the Asian Games.


Marketing


Emblem

The emblem of the 15th Asian Games is an image of an athlete in motion which represents fearless manner of a sportsperson in face of challenges and obstacles. The colours used in the emblem represent Qatar's landscape. Yellow represents the crescent-shaped sand dunes of the desert, blue represents the calm sea of the Gulf and red represents the sun and warm spirit of Asia.


Mascot

An
Arabian oryx The Arabian oryx or white oryx (''Oryx leucoryx'') is a medium-sized antelope with a distinct shoulder bump, long, straight horns, and a tufted tail. It is a bovid, and the smallest member of the genus '' Oryx'', native to desert and steppe area ...
named Orry served as the official mascot of the games. It was unveiled at the Doha waterfront on 1 January 2005 in conjunction with the start of the 700-day countdown to the games. He represents energy, determination, sportsmanship spirit, commitment, enthusiasm, participation, respect, peace and fun; he is also described as a great sportsman.


Medals

The medals of the games were designed by Dallah advertising and Gulf Media agency. Around 3,000 medals in gold, silver and bronze were made for the games. They featured Orry, the official Games mascot, as well as the
Al Zubara Fort Al Zubara Fort (), also known as Fort Zubarah, Zubarah Fort, Al Zubarah Fort, or Az Zubarah Fort, is a historic Qatari military fortress built under the oversight of Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani in 1938. History Al Zubara Fort was origi ...
on the obverse and the official logo on the reverse.


Promotion

To promote the games, the organisers built a countdown clock and a giant statue of the official mascot, Orry, at the
Doha Corniche The Doha Corniche () is a waterfront promenade and dual carriageway extending for along the crescent-shaped Doha Bay in Qatar's capital city, Doha. A lush, semi-circular linear public space, the Corniche serves as the central location for nati ...
. In addition, they also decorated the city with banners and 30 life-size versions of the mascot in a variety of different sporting poses. Touchscreen kiosks were set up at hotels, malls and businesses in the city to provide users with Qatar tourism and the games' information and details. On 3 April 2005, Qatar's flag carrier,
Qatar Airways Qatar Airways Company Q.C.S.C. (, ''al-Qaṭariyya''), operating as Qatar Airways, is the flag carrier of Qatar. Headquartered in the Qatar Airways Tower in Doha, the airline operates a hub-and-spoke network, flying to over 170 internatio ...
signed a US$10 million agreement with the Doha Asian Games Organising Committee (DAGOC) to become the event's official airline. The airline painted seven of its
Airbus A330 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body airliner developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus began developing larger A300 derivatives in the mid–1970s, giving rise to the A330 twinjet as well as the Airbus A340 quadjet, and launched both designs along ...
in three distinct Asian Games liveries namely blue, red and yellow and produced television commercials and a special 80-page guide on the sporting event in its in-flight magazine "Oryx" as part of its Global Advertising Campaign to promote the sporting event.


Merchandising

During the games, merchandises were sold at various locations in the city, including competition venues.


Venues

The Games used mostly new venues within the city. There were a total of 23 venues for the games, with 21 of them being competition venues and others being Main Media Centre and Athletes' village. After a major upgrade, Khalifa Stadium had a new running track, a new tensile fabric roof structure on its western seating and an arch on its east part. A temporary velodrome was built at Aspire Academy for track cycling events. The Athletes’ Village was built on a 330,000 square metres site in the city centre, which had 32 residential buildings with 811 five-bedroom apartments for athletes and 45 for Chef-de-Missions and could accommodate 11,500 athletes and team officials.


Transport

Doha International Airport Doha International Airport () is an airport in Doha, Qatar. It was Qatar's commercial international airport until Hamad International Airport opened on 27 May 2014. While all scheduled commercial traffic ceased, the airport site and existing ru ...
was expanded with the cost of US$1 billion in the run-up to the games to handle increasing air traffic volume and facilitate an estimated arrival of 10,500 athletes from 45 Asian countries, while Qatar's state-owned public transport service, the Qatar Transport Company ( Mowasalat) provided bus, taxi and limousine services in the city to spectators, athletes, officials and volunteers during the games.


The Games


Opening ceremony

The opening ceremony was viewed by 50,000 spectators in the
Khalifa International Stadium Khalifa International Stadium (, , ) is a multi-purpose stadium located in Doha, Qatar, around west from the centre of Doha. Its ground comprises a running track and a Pitch (sports field), grass pitch. Opened in 1976, the stadium was named af ...
, including VIP guests like
Jacques Rogge Jacques Jean Marie, Count Rogge (, ; 2 May 1942 – 29 August 2021) was a Belgian sports administrator, former athlete, and physician, who served as the eighth president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 2001 to 2013. In 201 ...
from the
International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...
,
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (born Mahmoud Sabbaghian on 28 October 1956) is an Iranian Iranian principlists, principlist and Iranian nationalism, nationalist politician who served as the sixth president of Iran from 2005 to 2013. He is currently a mem ...
from Iran,
Ismail Haniyeh Ismail Haniyeh (, ; 29 January 1962 – 31 July 2024) was a Palestinian politician who served as third chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau from May 2017 until Assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, his assassination in July 2024. He also served as ...
from Palestine and
Bashar al-Assad Bashar al-Assad (born 11September 1965) is a Syrian politician, military officer and former dictator Sources characterising Assad as a dictator: who served as the president of Syria from 2000 until fall of the Assad regime, his government ...
from Syria. The opening ceremony was directed and produced by the Australian
David Atkins David Atkins, OAM (born 12 December 1955) is an Australian dancer, choreographer, music-theatre director and producer. Career Stage and television Atkins began his performance career aged 12 with a role in the musical ''Mame''. As an adult ...
, who also helmed the
2000 Summer Olympics opening ceremony The opening ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics took place on the evening of Friday, 15 September 2000 in Stadium Australia, Sydney, during which the Games were formally opened by then-Governor-General Sir William Deane. As mandated by the Oly ...
in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
. The opening ceremony showcased the importance of the culture of the
Arab world The Arab world ( '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, comprises a large group of countries, mainly located in West Asia and North Africa. While the majority of people in ...
in the history of
Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
and referenced the region's contact with other Asian cultures. Several musical artists such as Hong Kong's
Jacky Cheung Jacky Cheung Hok-yau (born 10 July 1961) is a Hong Kong singer and actor. One of the most influential artists in the Greater China region, Cheung is widely regarded as a Heavenly King of Cantopop music and an icon of Hong Kong popular culture. He ...
, India's
Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...
star
Sunidhi Chauhan Sunidhi Chauhan (pronounced ; born Nidhi Chauhan, 14 August 1983) is an Indian playback singer. Known for her Bold vocal range, she has recorded songs for films in several Indian languages and List of awards and nominations received by Sunidhi ...
, Lebanon's
Majida El Roumi Majida El Roumi Baradhy (; born 13 December 1956) is a Lebanese-Egyptian soprano singer and United Nations Goodwill Ambassador. Early life Majida El Roumi Al Baradhy was born on 13 December 1956 in Kfarshima. Her father, Halim El Roumi, ...
and Spanish tenor
José Carreras Josep Maria Carreras Coll (; born 5 December 1946), better known as José Carreras (, ), is a Catalan operatic tenor from Spain who is particularly known for his performances in the operas of Donizetti, Verdi and Puccini. Born in Barcelona, ...
performed at the ceremony. The ceremony ended with the lighting of the cauldron at the main stadium by Mohammed Bin Hamad Al-Thani, son of the emir and captain of the Qatar equestrian endurance team. At the same time, another cauldron was lit at the top of the
Aspire Tower Aspire Tower, also known as The Torch Doha, is a skyscraper hotel located in the Aspire Zone complex in Doha, Qatar. Designed by architect Hadi Simaan and AREP and engineer Ove Arup and Partners, the tower served as the focal point for the 15 ...
. The games was officially opened by the
Emir of Qatar The Emir of the State of Qatar () is the monarch and head of state of the country. The emir is also the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces and guarantor of the Constitution. The emir holds the most powerful position in the country, and has a ...
, Sheikh
Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani (; born 1 January 1952) is a member of Qatar's royal family, the House of Thani. He was the ruling Emir of Qatar from 1995 until 2013 when he abdicated the throne, handing power to his fourth son Tamim bin Hamad Al ...
.


Participating National Olympic Committees

All 45 OCA members participated in the Games, including Iraq which returned to compete after its suspension was lifted. Iraq last competed at the
1986 Asian Games The 1986 Asian Games (), officially known as the 10th Asian Games and the X Asiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1986 (), were held from 20 September to 5 October 1986, in Seoul, South Korea. The venues and facilities of the 10th Asiad were the sa ...
and was suspended from
1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...
until 2004 due to the
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. The number in parentheses indicates the number of participants that the
National Olympic Committee A National Olympic Committee (NOC) is a national constituent of the worldwide Olympic movement. Subject to the controls of the International Olympic Committee, NOCs are responsible for organizing their people's participation in the Olympic Games ...
contributed.


Number of athletes by National Olympic Committees (by highest to lowest)


Sports

The sport events contested at the 2006 Asian Games are listed below. Officially there are 46 disciplines from 39 sports in contention. All events listed started after the opening ceremony except
badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racket (sports equipment), racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net (device), net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per s ...
,
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
,
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
,
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
,
table tennis Table tennis (also known as ping-pong) is a racket sport derived from tennis but distinguished by its playing surface being atop a stationary table, rather than the Tennis court, court on which players stand. Either individually or in teams of ...
, and
volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
, which had preliminaries before the opening ceremony. Trampoline discipline of gymnastics, and the sports of chess and triathlon made their debut at the event. *Aquatics ** ** ** ** * * * * * * * * * * * * **Road cycling **Track cycling * * * * * **Artistic gymnastics **Rhythmic gymnastics **Trampoline gymnastics * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * **Beach volleyball **Volleyball * * *


Calendar

In the following calendar for the 2006 Asian Games, each blue box represents an event competition, such as a qualification round, on that day. The yellow boxes represent days during which medal-awarding finals for a sport were held. :''All times are in
Arabia Standard Time UTC+03:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +03:00. In areas using this time offset, the time is three hours ahead of the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Following the ISO 8601 standard, a time with this offset would be writt ...
(
UTC+3 UTC+03:00 is an identifier for a UTC offset, time offset from UTC of +03:00. In areas using this time offset, the time is three hours ahead of the Coordinated Universal Time, Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Following the ISO 8601 standard, ...
)''


Closing ceremony

The closing ceremony featured an homage to classic
Middle Eastern The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
stories and served as a continuation of the opening ceremony. The artistic programme starred the same young boy who played the "Seeker" in the opening ceremony. In the first segment, the boy flew on a
magic carpet A magic carpet, also called a flying carpet, is a legendary carpet and common trope in fantasy fiction. It is typically used as a form of transportation and can quickly or instantaneously carry its user(s) to their destination. In literature On ...
and entered a magical storybook world that paid tribute to the classic folktales of ''
One Thousand and One Nights ''One Thousand and One Nights'' (, ), is a collection of Middle Eastern folktales compiled in the Arabic language during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as ''The Arabian Nights'', from the first English-language edition ( ...
''. This segment included references to stories featured in ''The Nights'' like ''
Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" () is a folk tale in Arabic added to the ''One Thousand and One Nights'' in the 18th century by its French translator Antoine Galland, who heard it from Syrian storyteller Hanna Diyab. As one of the most popul ...
'', ''
Sinbad the Sailor Sinbad the Sailor (; or Sindbad) is a fictional mariner and the hero of a Literary cycle, story-cycle. He is described as hailing from Baghdad during the early Abbasid Caliphate (8th and 9th centuries A.D.). In the course of seven voyages thr ...
'' and '' Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp''. An array of dancers, horses, and special effects were used to portray the different stories. In one scene, the games cauldron was extinguished when the magic carpet left the stadium. Afterwards, there was another segment called "''Land of the Oryx''" in which various dances were performed. All 45 nations' athletes entered the stadium after the artistic programme was finished. South Korean swimmer, Park Tae-hwan was announced as the best athlete of the Games, having won seven medals, three of them being golds from the swimming competitions. After that, the OCA President
Sheikh Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "elder (administrative title), elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim ulama, scholar. Though this title generally refers to me ...
Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah officially announced the Games closed. As per tradition, the Qatari Armed Forces personnel lowered the OCA flag, which would then be carried by the students of
Aspire Academy Aspire Academy () is a sports academy based in the Aspire Zone in Qatar, founded in 2004 with the goal to scout and help develop Qatari athletes, whilst also providing them with secondary school education. History Aspire Academy was establis ...
out of the stadium. Later, the Chinese flag was raised to the
Chinese National Anthem The "March of the Volunteers", originally titled the "March of the Anti-Manchukuo Counter-Japan Volunteers", is the official national anthem of the People's Republic of China since 1978. Unlike previous Chinese state anthems, it was written e ...
. Sheikh Ahmad then passed the OCA flag to the mayor of
Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
, Zhang Guangning, as the city was to be the next Asian Games host in 2010. A special 10 minute handover segment called "''Oriental Charm''" was then presented to showcase
Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
as the next host city. This segment fused the traditional dances of China's performing arts with a modern setting. Afterwards, the theme song of the games, "Triumph of the One," was performed by
Lea Salonga Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, ( ; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipino singer and actress. Known primarily for her work in theatre, she has starred in musicals on Broadway and in the West End. Her accolades include a Tony Award and a L ...
from the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
. The ceremony ended with a fireworks display that also marked the conclusion of the Games.


Medal table

The top ten ranked NOCs at these Games are listed below. The host nation, Qatar, is highlighted.


Broadcasting

A joint venture between Host Broadcast Services and IMG Media named the Doha Asian Games Broadcast Services (DAGBS), now International Games Broadcast Services (IGBS), was set up in September 2004 and served as the games' host broadcaster after being appointed by the organiser the following month. It distributed 2,000 hours of the Games content to its international rights holders. The International Broadcast Centre was constructed in Qatar International Exhibition Centre (QIEC). Viewers in the
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
an continent watch the event for the first time with
Eurosport Eurosport is a group of pay television networks in Europe and parts of Asia, owned and operated by Warner Bros. Discovery through its WBD Sports unit, it operates two main channels—Eurosport 1 and Eurosport 2—across most of its territorie ...
as the region's broadcaster.


Controversies


Athlete's death

South Korean
equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...
athlete Kim Hyung-chil died after falling off his horse on the morning of December 7 during the cross country competition which took place in the rain. The accident occurred at jump number eight during the cross-country stage of the three-day eventing competition. After the horse, named Bundaberg Black, rolled over him, he was taken to Hamad General Hospital, with his death later confirmed by the organizing committee. Kim died at around 10.50 am, shortly before noon Qatar time. During the accident, he suffered from severe trauma to his head, neck and upper chest. Kim's horse suffered a serious injury during the fall and was euthanised after the accident. According to South Korea National Olympic Committee president Kim Jung Kil, sources on the course said that the horse mistimed his jump in the wet conditions and slipped. South Korean officials are asking for an inquiry to determine if mismanagement or rain was the cause of the death. "In my professional opinion, neither the weather nor the footing had any bearing on this accident. If the horse falls, it's like two tons of bricks falling on you. There is nothing you can do about it," said Andy Griffiths, the Games event's technical overseer. Christopher Hodson, vice president of the International Equestrian Federation, said the course was fit to ride when a full investigation into the accident was conducted. Kim's father was an
equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...
athlete for South Korea in the
1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subseq ...
in
Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
and the younger Kim won a silver medal at the
2002 Asian Games The 2002 Asian Games, officially known as the XIV Asian Games and also known as Busan 2002 (), were an international multi-sport event held in Busan, South Korea from September 29 to October 14, 2002. Due to schedule impediments the football tour ...
in
Busan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...
on the same horse. This is the eighth death linked to the 2006 Asian Games, and the first involving an athlete. The accident came four days after the road accident which killed Jagadammamdhu Sudanan Thampi, a 60-year-old female volunteer from India.


Criticism

Despite the opening ceremony, which received some high praise, there was some criticism by some delegations and athletes. Heavy rain poured down just after the end of opening ceremony, and many believed that the organizers did not have plans to deal with it, creating a chaotic situation. Chef de Mission of the Philippines, Butch Ramirez, said that some of the members of the Philippine delegation, including athletes, were soaked in the rain because the organising officials did not allow them to re-enter the covered stadium for shelter; instead they had to stay in the heavy rain for more than 30 minutes. He went on to say that the breakdown in transportation protocols due to the rain caused the athletes to rush to the nearest bus station, exposing them to rain. Ramirez said that he himself was a victim of pushing and shoving due to this chaos, and that because of it, he suffered from an
asthma Asthma is a common long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wh ...
attack. According to one IOC insider who arrived back at his hotel soaked, this incident hurt the chances of Doha hosting the
2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...
, which Doha applied for on 25 October 2007, and lost on 4 June 2008 when they were eliminated from the pool. Transportation was one of the crucial factors involved in the decision process. Doha would have its own metro system in 2019.


Persian Gulf naming dispute

In brochures published in the lead-up to the games, the
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...
was referred to as the "Arabian Gulf." In response, Iranian state television accused the naming conventions to be influenced by a "
Zionist Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...
" plot. Subsequently, Iran threatened to boycott the games if the brochures were not changed. The organizers relented and Iran competed.


Doping

The list of athletes who failed the doping test during the Games: * Myanmar's Than Kyi Kyi, the 48 kilogram weightlifter, tested positive for a banned
diuretic A diuretic () is any substance that promotes diuresis, the increased production of urine. This includes forced diuresis. A diuretic tablet is sometimes colloquially called a water tablet. There are several categories of diuretics. All diuretics ...
. * Oo Mya Sanda, also of Myanmar, silver medalist for 75 kilogram weightlifting, tested positive for a
metabolite In biochemistry, a metabolite is an intermediate or end product of metabolism. The term is usually used for small molecules. Metabolites have various functions, including fuel, structure, signaling, stimulatory and inhibitory effects on enzymes, c ...
. * Uzbekistan's Elmira Ramileva, the 69 kilogram weightlifter, tested positive for an
anabolic steroid Anabolic steroids, also known as anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS), are a class of drugs that are structurally related to testosterone, the main male sex hormone, and produce effects by binding to the androgen receptor (AR). Anabolism, Anaboli ...
. * Alexander Urinov, also of Uzbekistan, the 105 kilograms weightlifter, tested positive for
cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...
. * Iraq's Saad Faeaz, a bodybuilder, disqualified from the Games after a banned
steroid A steroid is an organic compound with four fused compound, fused rings (designated A, B, C, and D) arranged in a specific molecular configuration. Steroids have two principal biological functions: as important components of cell membranes t ...
was found in his luggage in
Doha International Airport Doha International Airport () is an airport in Doha, Qatar. It was Qatar's commercial international airport until Hamad International Airport opened on 27 May 2014. While all scheduled commercial traffic ceased, the airport site and existing ru ...
. * Bahrain's Sayed Faisal Husain, silver medalist for 70 kilogram bodybuilding tested positive. * Korea's Kim Myong-Hun, silver medalist for 90 kilogram bodybuilding tested positive.


Gender test

* India's Santhi Soundarajan, silver medalist for women's 800 metre run, was officially stripped of her medal after she failed a gender test.


Bed shortage

The Games' organizers faced significant bed shortages due to the record number of more than 13,000 athletes and officials who attended the 2006 Games. The Athletes' Village had space for only 10,500 people and was not large enough to accommodate the record amount of attendees. To resolve the problem, organizers contracted with three cruise ships to provide sleeping quarters.


Last minute withdrawals

The Football competition lost three teams due to withdrawals and a suspension, which resulted rescheduling of the format and draws. Following the withdrawal of
Maldives The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in South Asia located in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India, abou ...
women's football team in early November, the women's football competition was forced to redraw to ensure both groups had an equal number of teams. Not much later,
Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ash ...
announced their withdrawal due to the lack of options available in Qatar.
Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...
also withdrew because the team was unable to afford a drug test after some of their players were accused of doping. India made big changes to its team close to the opening ceremonies. On November 22, 2006, the Indian sports dropped eight of the 32 events they had previously announced that they would be contesting in the Games. The dropped events were basketball, handball, sepak takraw, triathlon, ten-pin bowling and rugby sevens. The events were dropped due to the lack of medal hopes and to cut costs. As a result, 387 athletes were sent to Doha instead of the original 589 proposed by the
Indian Olympic Association The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) or Indian Olympic Committee (IOC) (ISO 15919, ISO: ''Bhāratīya Olaṃpika Saṃgha'') is responsible for selecting athletes to represent India at the Olympic Games, Asian Games and other international spor ...
. While volleyball also had three teams withdraw from the Games, Palestine withdrew due to the travelling difficulties caused by the closure of the
Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...
border. Indonesia and Turkmenistan also withdrew from the tournament, for unknown reasons, just hours before their first preliminary round match.


See also

*
2005 West Asian Games The 3rd West Asian Games were to be held from 7 to 17 April 2003 in Damascus, Syria. However, they were postponed and then cancelled. On 4 April 2002 the West Asian Games Federation decided that the Games would be held every four years, instead of ...
*
2011 Pan Arab Games The 2011 Arab Games also known as the 12th Arab Games took place in Doha, Qatar from 6 to 23 December 2011. This was the first time that the country had hosted the multi-sport event. Khalifa International Stadium was the main venue for the comp ...
*
2019 World Beach Games The 2019 World Beach Games, () officially known as the ANOC World Beach Games Qatar 2019 and commonly known as Qatar 2019, was the inaugural edition of the international beach and water multi-sport event organized by the Association of National ...
*
2022 FIFA World Cup The 2022 FIFA World Cup was the 22nd FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...
*
2030 Asian Games The 2030 Asian Games (), officially known as the 21st Asian Games () and commonly known as Doha 2030 (), will be the twenty-first edition of the Asian Games, a pan-Asian multi-sport event that scheduled to be held from 4 to 19 November 2030 in Do ...


Notes


References


External links

*
Doha 2006
at
Olympic Council of Asia The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) is a sports governing body, governing body of sports in Asia, currently with 45 member National Olympic Committees. Talal Fahad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah was elected as President of the OCA on 8 July 2023. However, on 3 ...
{{coord, 25.26496, N, 51.45061, E, source:placeopedia, display=title Sports competitions in Doha Asian Games, 2006 Multi-sport events in Qatar Asian Games by year
Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...
International sports competitions hosted by Qatar 21st century in Doha 2006 in Qatari sport December 2006 sports events in Asia