Qatar Airways to sponsor Union Cycliste Internationale in Doha

Qatar Airways has been named the official airline sponsor of the 2016 Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Road World Championships to be held Oct. 9-16 in Doha.

"We are proud to be the official airline partner bringing the UCI Road World Championships to the state of Qatar and to become the first Middle East country hosting the annual cycling race," Ehab Amin, Qatar Airways senior vice president vice president commercial for Africa, GCC, Indian subcontinent, Iran, Iraq, Levant and Yemen, said. "Qatar Airways is committed to investing in the communities we serve through the sponsorship of sports, cultural and educational events."

Qatar Airways will provide cycling competitors with flights to Doha in addition to transporting high-performance road bikes to Qatar's capital through the airline's air cargo service.

"We are delighted to introduce Qatar Airways as our official airline partner for the World Championships," Sheikh Khalid bin Ali Al Thani, chairman of UCI Road World Championships' organizing committee, said. "Thousands of fans, cyclists and sports officials will be descending on Doha for this high-profile world championships event making Qatar Airways the perfect partner to bring the world to Doha."

The cycling competition, which started in 1921, will feature racers from 75 countries.