Formation of Oman Triathlon Committee to give boost for sport

MUSCAT, Oct 30 - The Oman Triathlon Committee (OTC) was officially launched and logo unveiled during a ceremony at Kempinski Hotel in Seeb on Tuesday. The function was held under the patronage of Sayyid Khalid bin Hamed al Busaidi, Chairman of Oman Olympic Committee (OOC), in the presence of top officials. The recently set up committee, OTC, will focus on developing triathlon, which include running, swimming and cycling, in the Sultanate. Moahmmed bin Khalfan al Obeidani, Chairman of OTC, unveiled during his speech the main mission and strategies of the committee for the upcoming future. “Spreading the sports in the Sultanate and raising the awareness of this sport to different categories in the community are the main targets that OTC will work in the coming few years. Besides to these targets, our plans are also to organise different triathlon tournaments in the Sultanate, developing the level of organisation of domestic events, focusing on the junior and cadet players who are below 15 years to prepare Oman’s future stars in triathlon. We will coordinate with the Ministry of Tourism to position the Sultanate as a main hub for the foreigner triathletes to have their camps and tournaments, improving local human resources in coaching and umpiring,” Al Obeidani said. Haitham al Fari, Vice-Chairman of OTC, said the formation of the committee will enable the SMEs in Oman to open new business opportunities. “Triathlon requires special equipment like bikes and body suits for the athletes. Many of the required items are not available in the local market and people are purchasing it online. I believe that after the formation of the OTC along with having many triathlon events in the Sultanate will enable the domestic businessmen to cash in on this kind of business,” Al Fari added. The OTC chief pointed out that establishing national teams is not their priority at this stage. “Having strong national team can be done only if you have a clear and good foundation. We will work closely with the Oman School Sports Association to have some talented players in order to establish junior teams in the near future,” Al Obeidani added. Oman had organised many triathlon events in the past few years with support from the Ministry of Tourism and some specialised companies. The most significant event was Ironman 70.3 and 51.50. Many of the OTC board members are active triathletes who has achieved many accomplishments for the Sultanate in the past few years. OTC chairman Al Obeidani had registered a record for the Sultanate in his participation at Ironman event in UAE in 2017 as he finished the race within 14 hrs, 65 min and 50 seconds. Haitham al Fari, Vice-Chairman of OTC, participated in the Ironman 70.3 in Muscat and completed the race within 5 hrs and 25 minutes. Baidaa al Zadjali, member of OTC, competed at the Ironman 70.3 and 51.50 in Muscat. Al Zadjali had overseas participation in Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Madagascar and Kenya. Salim al Alawi, member of OTC, had participated in Asian Games in Doha in 2006 and Ironman 70.3 in Germany.