DOHA: The Qatar Olympic squad has kicked off preparations for an event that could help them qualify for next year's Olympic Games to be held in Tokyo. The AFC U-23 qualifying tournament will be held in Thailand from January 8 to 26, 2020. The squad will continue to train without the players from Al Sadd and Al Duhail who are busy appearing in the Amir Cup currently on. Following the Amir Cup matches, the players of the two sides will play their AFC Champions League matches. Meanwhile QFA said the draw of the qualifying tournament in Thailand will be held on September 27 on the sidelines of an AFC workshop to be held in Doha. The Qatari team qualified for the tournament after leading an event that brought together the teams of Oman, Afghanistan and Nepal at Aspire Academy in March. Qatar finished third in the same event held in China last year.