he Sultanate of Oman bagged four medals in the West Asian Athletics Championship which concluded in Iraq's Basra on Saturday. Oman’s athletes managed to win one gold, one silver and two bronzes. Salim bin Abdullah al Rawahi claimed bronze medal in the men’s long jump with a distance of 6.91 metres while Abdullah Gamer of Iraq won gold with a mark of 7.43m and his team-mate Ehab Yassine received the silver medal after registering 7.03m.
Sprinter Mazoon al Alawi got the bronze medal in the women’s 100 metres hurdles after clocking the race in 15.61 seconds. The gold medal went to Iraq athlete Kurdistan Jamal (14.73 seconds) while Al Yasar Yousfi Al Mohammed from Syria finished second in14.87 seconds.
Hibaa al Asmi won silver for Oman in the javelin competitions after she registered a mark of 40.67 metres. Earlier, on the opening day of the competitions, young sprinter Al Mulham bin Darwish al Balushi won the first gold medal for Oman in the men’s 100 metres sprint in 10.25 seconds. Azza al Yaarubi won the silver medal in the women’s 100 metres after she clocked 12.01 seconds.
Sayyar al Anzi, Chairman of West Asian Athletics Association, said that the event was organised successfully in Iraq. “We are happy that the tournament is back in Iraq after a long gap. Thanks to the local organising committee for their hard work in wrapping up the tournament on a successful note. I am happy with the results, especially those who qualified for the Paris Olympic Games in Paris.”
14 countries took part in the championship including Iran, which is participating for the first time in the history of the championship. Oman’s delegation comprised 15 athletes including Barakat al Harthy, Ali al Balushi, Mubeen al Kindi, Mohammed al Saadi, Khalid al Ghailani, Hamza al Jabri, Al Mulham al Balushi, Salim al Rawahi, Hana al Qasmi, Azza al Yaarubi, Mazoon al Alawi, Alaa al Zadjali, Duha al Sinwai, Azza al Hinai and Hibaa al Asmi.
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