Following strong interest from multiple parties, the agreement was made with Al Jazeera Sport on the basis of a strong financial offer from the broadcaster which provides for extensive coverage of the IAAF’s premier series of competitions. The agreement perfectly dovetails with Al Jazeera Sport’s position as the host broadcaster of the 13th IAAF World Indoor Championships which will be held in 2010 in Doha, Qatar.
With the conclusion of this deal the IAAF and Al Jazeera Sport extend a collaboration that started in 2003, meaning over 10 years of a mutually beneficial partnership.
Al Jazeera Sport will provide extensive live coverage of the IAAF’s flagship events, the World Championships in Athletics and World Indoor Championships as well as guaranteed coverage of all other World Athletics Series events during the period across 23 different territories in the Middle East and Northern Africa, with a potential reach of over 200 Million views across the region.
“The conclusion of this agreement which extends our long standing relationship with Al Jazeera Sport is yet another representation of the deep foundations that the sport of Athletics is constructing in Asia,” commented IAAF President Lamine Diack. “From last year’s World Championships in Osaka, to this summer’s Beijing Olympics, international track and field is on the march in the continent.”
“The 2010 World Indoors in Doha followed a year later by a celebration of the World Championships in Athletics in Daegu, Korea, indicates the growing importance of Asia to the IAAF and the sport as a whole. Therefore it is only appropriate that a much respected broadcaster such as Al Jazeera Sport should wish to be closely coupled with this development that concerns its core home market in the Middle East,” concluded President Diack.
Nasser Al-Khelaifi, General Manager of Al Jazeera Sport Channels said “We are delighted to renew our agreement with the IAAF for the 2010 to 2013 period and to extend our partnership by acting as host broadcaster for the 13th IAAF World Indoor Championships in 2010 in Doha. Al Jazeera Sport will continue to showcase IAAF World Athletic Series events raising the awareness and interest in IAAF events in the Middle East and North Africa.”
Other major broadcasting deals are currently under negotiation and will be announced in due time.
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