DOHA, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The success of the 15th Asian Games has proved host Doha's capability of staging big event and is part of a strategy to bring the 2016 Olympic Games to the west Asian country, the Qatar National Olympic Committee (QNOC) said here on Monday.

    QNOC Secretary General H. E. Sheikh Saoud Bin Abdul-Rahman Al-Thani said, "We already had a strategy to bid for the Olympic Games but in order to bid for the Olympics, you have to prove you are able to hold big events like the Asian Games."

    "Qatar has hosted the Asian Games, West Asian Games and three events in the Gulf Cup. So this bid is not new, it is part of our strategy," he told reporters.

    "In the Asian Games, we have it the same way as in the Olympic Games. It is our strategy toward 2016 (Olympics) and at the time, Qatar is capable of hosting Olympic Games or any big event."

    He said the QNOC received a letter two days from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) outlining the bidding agenda for the 2016 Olympics. The deadline has been extended by two months, so the bids will be presented between January and September 2007 before the IOC votes for the winner in 2009.

    "We hope Qatar will have enough experience to convince the IOC delegates," he said.