College of Law Celebrates National Sports Day

The College of Law held two events as part of Qatar National Sports Day: golf lessons at the Education City Golf Club (ECGC) organized by the student-run HBKU College of Law Society and a legal forum, featuring Dr. Ahmed Khellil Abbassi, Executive Director of Competitions and Football Development, Qatar Stars League (QSL), examining the role of anti-corruption law in sport.

The introduction to golf session was the second one that the Law Society held in as many years.  On behalf of the Law Society - a student-run organization - Vice-President Salem Al-Adba took the lead in organizing the training with PGA Golf Professional and PGA of Great Britain and Ireland Professional at ECGC, Mr. Eoghan Clerkin.  

The forum, Sports and Ethics: Legal Perspectives, held on February 10 at Education City’s Minaretein Building, brought together experts to discuss a variety of legal challenges and solutions for tackling corruption, such as cheating and match-fixing, while maintaining fairness and transparency in sports. Joining Dr. Abbassi on the panel was HBKU College of Law Professor Ilias Bantekas, the recipient of the Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani International Anti-Corruption Excellence award for safeguarding sports, and Professor Zachary Calo, who teaches Sports Law in the College.   

“The events enabled College of Law students to focus on developing a new athletic skill while learning about substantive legal aspects of the business of sport,” remarked Susan Karamanian, Dean, College of Law. “We were delighted that Dr. Abbassi joined my colleagues of the faculty to offer a perspective on anti-corruption in sport given his background in the Qatar Stars League and we are grateful to ECGC Golf Club, Mr. Clerkin in particular, for introducing golf to our students.”