Asian Games 2006 in Doha, Qatar

In December 2006, the 15th Asian Games took place in Doha, Qatar.

It was the second largest multi-sport event and third largest sporting event in the world, behind the Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup.
QATAR (in the Gulf of Arabia) was -- until the discovery of huge reserves of oil and natural gas -- a cluster of small fishing and pearling villages. It's population is about 800,000, so the crowds were unlikely to be huge for the 424 events in 39 sports taking place over the 16 days of the Games. It was the largest sporting event ever held in the Middle East. Qatar is going to bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Billiards was just one of the non-Olympic sports featuring in the Games with kabaddi, wushu, karate, equestrian endurance racing and sepaktakraw giving a distinctly Asian flavour to the continental event.

China won the most medals followed by Japan and South Korea.

Links:
Doha Asian Games
Doha 2006 Official website
Asian Games history:
DELHI 1951 (India)
MANILA 1954 (Philippines)
TOKYO 1958 (Japan)
JAKARTA 1962 (Indonesia)
BANGKOK 1966 (Thailand)
BANGKOK 1970 (Thailand)
TEHRAN 1974 (Iran)
BANGKOK 1978 (Thailand)
- For the eighth consecutive Games, Japan topped the medals table.
NEW DELHI 1982 (India)
- China toppled Japan, winning four more gold medals than the Japanese.
SEOUL 1986 (1988 Seoul Olympics) (South Korea)
BEIJING 1990 (China)
HIROSHIMA 1994 (Japan)
BANGKOK 1998 (Thailand)
PUSAN 2002 (South Korea)
DOHA 2006 (Qatar)