HE Major General Dahlan Jumaan Al Hamad, President of the Asian and Qatar Athletics Federations and Vice-President of the IAAF, expressed his appreciation for the performance shown by our promising champion Musaab Balla in the 800m and his qualification for the final. He said Musaab is among the runners who have developed markedly of late and has a good level of performance, qualifying for a final that included world champions and record holder David Rudisha of Kenya — an achievement that deserves praise — and he wished Musaab success in the final.
Major General Al Hamad also expressed his satisfaction with young Ashraf Al Saifi’s first appearance in the hammer throw, saying Al Saifi is world champion at youth level and that this World Championships appearance is the first of his career, so qualifying for the final is a good thing, even though missing the podium is not a bad outcome. He noted that Al Saifi gained experience from this participation and will have an outstanding level in future, especially as this championship represents a step up for him in the hammer throw, having now moved up to the senior ranks while still a youth athlete — meaning the most important thing for the athlete is to progress gradually so as to build a steady career in the “mother of sports”, especially since the World Championships is no easy matter and brings together the world’s best medal-winning athletes.
Major General Dahlan Al Hamad also stressed that our champion Femi did not fall short either, finishing out by a fraction of a second, which makes him worthy of praise, especially since he deservedly earned his place in this challenge at the first stage and reached the semi-final. Al Hamad added that any sprinter faces a great challenge at the first stage, but Femi overcame that challenge and remained competitive until the end, doing better than those who failed to qualify — though in sprinting the challenge is extremely difficult against big names such as Jamaica’s Usain Bolt and America’s Justin Gatlin, and the champions of the United States and Jamaica.
Major General Dahlan Al Hamad wished the sons of Qatar success in the challenge, with Femi having a chance in the 200m and another chance for Musaab Balla, before the golden boy Mutaz Essa Barshim takes flight in search of glory at the World Championships.
