Our promising runner Mohanad Khamis was crowned with the gold medal at the GCC championship’s 8km cross country race, after a fierce contest with runners from Bahrain, Oman and the UAE, and Mohanad managed to control the race despite the difficulty of the course and the harsh weather conditions that prevailed in the emirate of Sharjah and most of the region yesterday. The competitions were preceded by a simple opening ceremony telling the story of the region’s and the UAE’s cultural heritage, and in the rest of the competitions Qatar’s runners took part in the men’s and juniors’ individual cross country races. For his part, Mohammed Al Fadala, Secretary General of the Qatar Athletics Federation, congratulated the promising runner Mohanad Khamis on winning first place and gold in the 8km race for the youth category, praising his sporting excellence, and noting that champion Mohanad had put in an extraordinary effort and outperformed runners from the other brotherly countries, showing his high abilities and good readiness to top the race despite the difficulty of the course and the intensity of the competition. Al Fadala said Mohanad had benefited from his training camp in South Africa and confirmed his high level of readiness, and Al Fadala added that the rest of Qatar’s runners had competed individually and achieved good results, wishing everyone the best in the challenges ahead, and noting that HE Dr Thani Abdulrahman Al Kuwari, the federation’s president, had met the champions before the start of the cross country race and urged everyone to give their best effort and perform at their best to honour their country at the Gulf sporting gathering,
For his part, Talal Mansour, Assistant Secretary General and member of the GCC athletics technical committee, praised the efforts made by Qatar’s runners at the Sharjah cross country championship, and said: thank God for what these promising champions achieved and gained, as they spared no effort and put in good work despite the difficult weather along the race course, and Talal Mansour concluded his remarks by stressing that the level shown by Qatar’s runners and the spirit they displayed during the competition is a promising sign, wishing them success in the upcoming championships and challenges.
For his part, adviser Ahmed Al Kamali, member of the IAAF Council, chairman of the GCC athletics organising committee and president of the UAE Athletics Federation, said the gracious patronage of the championship by the Ruler of Sharjah is a badge of honour for all of us and a driving force for everyone, praising the fruitful and constructive cooperation from the Sharjah Sports Council and Al Bata’eh Club, who made great and valuable efforts to facilitate the federation’s task in hosting and ensuring the success of this important Gulf event, noting that among the fruits of this cooperation is the construction of a track for cross country races that will serve the sport in the country, and expressing his hope that other sports councils would follow the example of the Sharjah Sports Council and extend a helping hand to the federation, hosting some Gulf and international competitions in support of our national teams.
Adviser Al Kamali took the opportunity, in his capacity as chairman of the GCC athletics organising committee and president of the UAE Athletics Federation, to welcome the fellow delegations from the GCC states, heads of delegations, administrative and technical staff and athletes, to their brotherly country the United Arab Emirates, and to the emirate of Sharjah, the cultural capital of the UAE, and said that Al Bata’eh Club had built a wonderful, modern track for road races around the Al Muntazir reserve, and that the federation would cooperate with Al Bata’eh Club to make the most of this track for the benefit of the people of the region and our national teams
