QF’s new platform GOALS to recount inspiring stories of Qatar's journey to World Cup
In the past, people used paintings and sculptures to convey their culture and stories through the ages. Today, however, words, photographs, and videos have become the most prominent forms of storytelling – and they are the tools that participants in Qatar Foundation’s GOALS program have used to recount their inspiring experiences on the journey toward the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™.
Taking place at Qatar Foundation’s (QF) Education City and other locations during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, GOALS will feature photographs and stories taken and told by a diverse group of people living in Qatar, from workers and students to artists and football coaches, who tell their personal experiences of football, society, and culture in the run-up to the tournament.
Inamul Hasan is a participant in the GOALS program, which was launched in November 2021 by QF in partnership with the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy’s Generation Amazing program, The Sports Creative, Goal Click, and Al Salam International. Hasan has an inspiring story that started with his journey from Sri Lanka to Qatar to work in a local company as a catering supervisor, to the point where he is today a football coach, ambassador, and workers’ advocate.
“Joining Generation Amazing played a major role in changing my life for the better, and then my participation in the GOALS program at QF was the culmination of this journey, giving me the opportunity to share my story with others,” Hasan said.
"The GOALS program helped me improve my photography skills, I used the camera to capture and document the lives of workers and their passion for football, and today I have the skills to write and tell their inspiring stories.”
Fellow GOALS participant Mehreen Fazal said she was excited when she was invited to join the program, explaining: "As a volunteer at Qatar Foundation, I was invited to join GOALS in November 2021, which gave me the opportunity to share my World Cup journey and document it with words and pictures.”
Fazal highlighted the continuous support she was provided by the program through intensive workshops, which allowed her to learn about technical aspects of photography using the latest camera models, and to attend high-profile sporting events.
Meanwhile, Shivi Mishra, who has also participated in GOALS, said that joining the program gave her a space to share her vision of football through the lens of the camera, pointing to the impact that Qatar’s hosting of the FIFA World Cup™ has had on her life.
“Since it was announced that Qatar had won the right to host the tournament, I dreamed of traveling and working in Doha,” she said. “My father found a job in Qatar the following year, and I am currently working at the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy as a logistics project officer.”
Explaining what lies behind her love of photography, Mishra said that she discovered albums of photos taken by her father during his childhood and college days, and was inspired by him to also document her life through photographs.
And Nada Mohamed Wafa, a QF graduate, sees her participation in the GOALS program as an opportunity to tell her personal story about football, society, culture, and the path to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™.
"The program helped me discover different ways to share my stories that I was not previously aware of, such as photography and video,” she said. “The photos I took express my journey as an athlete and a working mother, and I chose to take them because they show the true meaning of dedication, passion and hard work."
Stories created by GOALS program participants are also available to view at this website.
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