Sharjah: The UAE won five gold medals and one silver on the first day of athletics at the Second Arab Women Sports Tournament (AWST 2014) at Al Thiqah Club in Sharjah on Monday.
Betlhem Desalegn won the 400 metres in 1:02:79 and Alya Mohammad Saeed won the 5000 metres in 18:17:16. Hanan Ebrahim and Marwa Al Jasmi won gold and silver medals in the javelin with distances of 28.27 and 25.68, and Mariam Salim Al Sa’adi won the shot put with a distance of 11.86 metres. Elsewhere, the UAE won the 4x400 metre relay in 4:35:45.
“AWST 2014 is without doubt a successful tournament with grade A organisation,” said Shaikh Eisa Bin Rashid Al Khalifa, senior vice president of the Union of Arab National Olympic Committees. “The support and attention extended by Shaikha Jawaher Bint Mohammad Al Qasimi, Chairperson of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs is a cornerstone in this success, so is the presence of 15 Arab countries, which is sparking enthusiasm and ambition for young Arab women. We hope to see all the Arab countries in the next version of the tournament.”
Building on success
Meanwhile, Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmad Bin Sultan Al Qasimi, chairman of the tournament’s supreme organising committee, said that this year’s tournament builds on the success of the last AWST in 2012. He added that women’s affairs were at the heart of the attention of His Highness Shaikh Dr Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah and his wife Shaikha Jawaher Bint Mohammad Al Qasimi, especially with regard to women’s sports. Shaikh Khalid Al Qasimi hailed five sports clubs in Sharjah for hosting the events and said the third AWST would include equine sports and even more participating Arab nations.
