HUSSAIN GETS GOLD,
BRONZE FOR TABLE TENNIS TEAM OMAN’S MEDAL TALLY IS NOW 40 MEDALS AT THE FIRST GCC GAMES
Oman’s swimmer Hussain Tarik snatched the gold medal in the 400m individual medley category and bronze medal in the 50-metre breaststroke, while Saudi’s Ahmed al Muueibid won the silver and his team-mate Emad al Sibiani claimed the bronze medal in the first GCC Games in the UAE. Moreover, the national swimmer Ibrahim Saleh claimed the bronze medal in the men’s 200m butterfly category.
Paddlers Taliyah al Rawahi and Salma al Nasiri claimed the bronze medal in the women’s table tennis doubles category taking Oman’s medal tally to 40 medals.
Omani girls defeated UAE’S Hussa al Nimr and Maryam Yaqib 3-2 in the quarterfinals before losing to Bahrain in the semis. Bahraini’s Fatima al Aali and Kinda Mahmoud won the gold medal after defeating the Kuwaiti pair Rayan al Eidan and Maryam al Halwaji 3-1, who won the silver medal. The bronze medal was also shared by another Bahraini pair Dana al Khayyat and Rayan Rashid.
In the men’s doubles, Ali al Rawahi and Nasser al Zaabi lost to the Qatari team 2-3. Qatar team snatched the gold medal after beating Bahrain team in the final. The bronze medal was won by the UAE team.
Masoud al Shaqsi, a former international referee and board member of the Table Tennis Association, said, “The young players get an opportunity to interact and gain experience in preparation for the upcoming competitions, and we have certainly gained players who will be the core of Oman team in the upcoming tournaments. We thank the organising committee for the good reception and good organisation. We also thank the Oman Olympic Committee for providing the opportunity for our youngsters.”
Oman national cycling team ended their participation in the Gulf Games with one medal in the team category on the second day of the competition, which was held in Abu Dhabi.
In the individual competition, Mohammed al Fadhili and Ahmed al Ajmi finished seventh and eighth. The gold medal was won by Saudi’s Hussain Jaafar, his team-mates Taha Zaki won the silver, and Obaid al Suwaidi won the bronze.
In handball, Oman lost an opportunity to claim bronze when it lost to Bahrain 24-31 on Friday at Al Bataeh Club hall in Sharjah. Omani players tried to keep up with Bahrain during the two halves of the match, but the match was in favour of experienced Bahrainis.
They defeated UAE 30-26 and Qatar 29-28 in initial matches.
Oman golf team maintained second place in the overall team standings in the competitions of the second day, which witnessed exciting competition among five Gulf teams. The UAE team is at the top of the list and the Saudi team in third place. Masoud al Barwani, said, “Oman players have succeeded in achieving good results so far. There is great hope for achieving a medal in this participation, and we hope that our players will exert more effort on the last day of the competition.”
In billiards, Omani player Omar al Hamidi lost 6-7 to Abdulrahman al Mousa of Saudi Arabia in the first round, and 2-7 in the second round. Al Zubair al Balushi lost to Bahraini player Haider Marum 7-2 in both rounds.