Lanka Talents

Doha’s win was met with celebration at the Olympic Council of Asia meeting that was held in the Omani capital Muscat.

Qatar pipped Saudi Arabia in the bidding process, which has never hosted the games.

Doha hosted the Asian Games in 2006, while the 2022 World Cup will be held in Qatar.

The two Gulf states, along with the UAE, have both competed to become regional sporting hubs.

The next Asian Games editions will be held in 2022 in Hangzhou, China, and in 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.

The announcement comes as Saudi Arabia and Qatar are expected to bury the hatchet after a three-year dispute that has seen Riyadh and its regional allies impose an illegal blockade on Qatar.

Recent reports suggest the GCC member states are all in agreement to end the Gulf crisis, with a positive result expected ahead of the summit in January.