Asiad Medal Rush Continues

TDT | Manama

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Balew defends 10,000m crown as Bahrain add three more athletics medals

Birhanu Balew successfully defended his men’s 10,000 metres crown as Bahrain added another gold and two bronze medals to their athletics haul at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya yesterday.

Balew led a double podium finish for the kingdom at Nagoya City Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium, winning in 28 minutes 27.51 seconds, while compatriot Albert Kiptoo secured bronze in 28:34.38. India’s Gulveer Singh split the Bahraini pair to take silver in 28:29.38.

Edidiong Odiong added a third medal of the night with bronze in the women’s 100m, where Raihanah Garoubah also reached the final and finished seventh.

The latest successes continued an impressive campaign for the nationals, following Winfred Yavi’s women’s 10,000m triumph and the mixed 4x400m relay team’s Games-record victory earlier in the programme.

And there could be more to come today, with Salwa Eid Naser, part of that relay quartet, safely through to the women’s 400m final as she pursues another individual Asian Games title.

Distance Double

Balew’s triumph came at the end of a tightly contested men’s 10,000m, with Kiptoo moving to the front at the 6,000m mark and remaining there through 7,000m.

China’s Wang Wenjie had taken over by 9,000m, but Balew produced the strongest finish to cross the line first in 28:27.51.

Singh followed just 1.87 seconds later to take silver, with Kiptoo completing the podium five seconds behind his compatriot.

It was Balew’s second successive Asian Games 10,000m title, having also triumphed at the previous edition in Hangzhou.

Odiong Takes Bronze

Bahrain’s success extended to the sprint events, where Odiong and Garoubah both earned places in the women’s 100m final after winning their opening heats a day earlier.

Odiong finished second in her semi-final in 11.33 seconds to qualify automatically, while Garoubah clocked 11.45 to advance as one of the two fastest non-automatic qualifiers.

Back on the track for the medal race, the 29-year-old matched her semi-final time, crossing the line in 11.33 to claim bronze.

China’s Chen Yujie stormed to gold in a new Games record of 11.06, breaking the previous mark of 11.15, while Singapore’s Shanti Pereira took silver in 11.21. Garoubah finished seventh in 11.53.

Away from the 100m, Naser began her individual 400m campaign by winning her opening-round heat in 53.02. The 28-year-old was the third-fastest qualifier overall, securing her place in today’s final.

There was less success in the men’s events, with Abdulraof Rashid and Ali Haji both missing out on the 100m final.

Rashid nevertheless produced a personal best of 10.34 to finish fifth in his semi-final and 14th overall, while Haji was also fifth in his race in 10.36 and placed 15th overall.

Musa Isah’s men’s 400m campaign also came to an end after he finished fourth in his heat in 46.38, leaving him 13th overall.

More to Come

Another packed programme awaits today, beginning with Elhassan Elabbassi in the men’s marathon at 1.30am, followed by Shitaye Habte and Rose Sitienei in the women’s race at 1.50am.

The focus then shifts to the shorter distances, with Haji returning for the men’s 200m heats at 5.30am and Abbas Ali contesting another heat at 5.54am.

Later in the day, Salem Bakheet lines up in the men’s 110m hurdles at 1.21pm, before Garoubah contests the women’s 200m at 1.55pm.

Abdelrahman Mahmoud takes part in the men’s shot put final at 2pm, while Odiong returns for the second women’s 200m heat three minutes later.

The middle-distance runners then enter the action, with Zouhair Aouad and Abdisamad Hirsi beginning their men’s 1500m campaigns at 2.51pm and 3.01pm respectively.

Attention will then turn to Naser in the women’s 400m final at 3.45pm. The 2018 Asian Games champion holds both the Asian record of 48.14 and the Games record of 50.09, and has already struck gold in Aichi-Nagoya as part of the kingdom’s victorious mixed 4x400m quartet.

Nelly Korir rounds off Bahrain’s action for the day when she contests the women’s 1500m final at 4.15pm.

The athletics competition continues through Tuesday.