Bahrain capture seven more medals

TDT | Manama              

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain bagged seven more medals, including three gold, at the 15th Arab Games in Algeria. The trio of gold medals and one bronze medal were won in sailing, while another two silver medals and a bronze were captured in table tennis.

The sailing gold medals were claimed by Abdulla Janahi in the Laser Standard category, Malak Aldoseri in the Optimist and Waleed Tawfiq in the Laser 4.7 category. Fellow-Bahraini Khalifa Aldoseri also stepped onto the Laser 4.7 podium, taking the bronze.

Bahrain Maritime Sports Association president and Arab Sailing Federation chief Shaikh Khalifa bin Abdulla Al Khalifa was on hand to award the medals to the Bahraini sailors.

Bahrain’s delegation director at the Arab Games, Noman Al Hasan, and technical director Lounes Madene were also in attendance. Meanwhile, Bahrain’s table tennis medals were won in the doubles categories.

The pairing of Maryam Al A’ali and Phadke Amruta took the silver in the women’s doubles after losing in the final to Tunisia’s Fadwa Garci and Abir Haj Salah 1-3. The men’s pairing of Mohamed Saleh and Rashed Rashed followed suit, taking the silver in the men’s doubles following a 1-3 defeat to Saudi Arabia’s Abdulaziz Bushulaybi and Azzam Alim in their final.

The Bahrainis then also claimed a mixed doubles bronze medal, after Maryam and Rashed lost in the semi-finals to Tunisia’s Fadwa and Adam Hmam 1-3. Bahrain Olympic Committee member and Bahrain Table Tennis Association (BTTA) president Shaikha Hayat bint Abdulaziz Al Khalifa was present to hand the paddlers their medals in the awarding ceremony.

The sailing and table tennis seven-medal haul brought Bahrain’s delegation’s medal tally to 43 in all sports so far. These include 20 gold medals, 12 silver medals and 11 bronze. Aside from sailing and table tennis, medals have also been won in athletics, swimming, badminton and cycling.

Two of the other medals Bahrain captured were in athletics for people of determination. These were gold by Elias Alyassi and silver by Amal Fardan. The medals won in this sport are not counted on the overall table for the nations’ final classification.

Bahrain’s 43 medals are now the best-ever for the Kingdom at any edition of the Arab Games. The number, which can still grow, has surpassed the 37-medal tally claimed by the national delegation at the previous edition of the Arab Games in 2011 in Doha. Bahrain also took part in the 2007, 2004, 1999, 1992, 1985 and 1976 editions of the Games.