Our talented champion Mohammed Ibrahim Qaida won the gold medal in the javelin throw at the start of the 15th Gulf Cooperation Council general athletics championship, hosted by the Saudi Athletics Federation at Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz Sports City’s field and track in Qatif, with 300 athletes representing the six Gulf national teams taking part. Qaida took first place with a mark of 66.10 m. Elsewhere, the championship’s competitions continue today, with the triple jump final featuring Rashed Al Manai, the discus throw featuring Ahmed Deeb and Khalid Deeb, the 800 m featuring runner Jamal Hairan, the 400 m hurdles featuring Khalid Al Shahrani and Jamal Abdel Nasser, and the 3000 m steeplechase featuring Muadh Abdulrahman. The head of our national team’s delegation is Khalifa Abdulmalik, the federation’s executive director and national teams director, and the delegation comprises 38 members, including 20 athletes and 10 coaches and assistant coaches, in addition to the delegation’s technical, administrative and medical staff.
Khalifa Abdulmalik affirms
Khalifa Abdulmalik, director of Qatar’s national athletics teams and head of our national team’s delegation, said participation in the Gulf athletics championship in Qatif is an opportunity for the young athletes taking part in Qatar’s national team to improve their times and marks and gauge their technical level ahead of upcoming challenges — the Arab championship in Bahrain and the Asian men’s championship in China. Abdulmalik said what Mohammed Qaida achieved in the javelin was a good morale boost, noting that our athletics team focused on Qaida in the javelin and he succeeded in reaching the podium, but as head of the delegation he expects the second and third days of the Gulf championship to see Qatari success through several names competing in the field and track events, pointing to Rashed Al Manai in the jumps, Ahmed Deeb in the discus, Jamal Hairan in the 800 m, Khalid Al Shahrani, and the rest of the names.
Abdulmalik affirmed that the competition at the championship was not at its strongest at the outset, since most champions in the region are gearing up for the start of their season this April, especially with the Diamond League challenge awaiting them alongside the Asian men’s championship in June, before heading to the World Championships, the big event.
He affirmed that the national team has many outstanding names in the field and track events who did not take part in the championship due to other priorities this season, foremost among them golden champion Mutaz Barshim in the high jump, champion Femi Ogunode in the sprints alongside teammate Samuel Francis, as well as Musab Balla in the 800 m, Haroun in the 400 m, and Mohammed Al Garni in the 1500 m, along with the rest of that group of names. He noted they have different challenges this season and so did not take part, but the group currently competing represents promising athletes seeking to improve their times and develop their level in order to earn a place at the Arab challenge in Bahrain in under two weeks.
