African runners dominate in road races at 11th Nad Al Sheba Sports Tournament
Khalil Al Bedwawi and Ruqayya Al Marzooqi champions in races for UAE nationals
Dubai: Ethiopia’s Dagne Tesfu Demsie and Morocco’s Wafa Zarouai emerged winners in the 10km men’s and women’s races of the 11th Nad Al Sheba Sports Tournament, held late on Saturday.
Tesfu Demsie took the top honours with a time of 27.50 minutes ahead of the Moroccan pair of Anouar El Ghouz (27.59) and Noaman El Assaoui (28.05), while Zarouai won the race in a time of 34.36 minutes before Ethiopia’s Fanos Tekle (36.49) and Great Britain’s Kate Jordan (37.28).
Among the UAE men and women, Khalid Khalil Al Bedwawi and Ruqayya Mohammed Al Marzooqi were the winners. Al Bedwawi was the winner with a time of 30.12 minutes, finishing ahead of Khalifa Al Nuaimi (30.33 minutes) and Obaid Al Nuaimi (30.46 minutes), while Ruqayya Al Marzooqi also notched in a modest time of 41.06 minutes, leaving Alya Obaid Al Shamsi (43.01 minutes) and Fatima Al Shamsi (43.23 minutes) in second and third places, respectively.
5km race
Morocco’s Amine Souida (14.57 minutes) finished on top in the 5km open races for men followed by Uganda’s Julius Kyasanku (15.14 minutes) and Gwidi Grace (15.20 minutes) of Algeria. In the women’s race, Liesbeth Verheyden put on a dominant show to win in 17.47 minutes. Romanian Alisa Petrova (18.02 minutes) took the second place while Ida Mathilde Rubens Steensgaard (18.32 minutes) finished third.
It was an exciting finish to the 5km race for senior men with Morocco’s Mbarek Rihane finishing in a time of 16.35 minutes and just seven seconds clear of second-placed Jean Claude Haramboure (16.42) of France, while Great Britian’s Simon Marshall was a distant third with a time of 18.36 minutes.
Honours in the women’s seniors race were reserved for Frenchwoman Latifa Essarokh as she timed 20.16 minutes for her gold medal winning performance. Liliana Orejuela of Colombia took second place with a time of 25.50 minutes, while Great Britain’s Penelope Anne Mary Emes finished in third in a time of 26.09 minutes.
The junior age categories also witnessed some close finishes with Yarib Nusair Al Yaarbi and Hattie Garrett winning the boy’s and girls 4km races, respectively, while Abdullatif Ismail Al Sabri and Carla Benzmueller clinched top honours in the 4km boy’s and girls youth categories.
More than 3,000 runners from across the world participated in the road running races which had a total of Dh325,000 in prize money.
Padel sees intense battle
The Padel competition also concluded with some noteworthy performances from teams and players. The fight for superiority in the teams contest ended with the Netherlands emerging champions following a 2-0 win against Kuwait in Saturday’s final.
The UAE’s quest for at least a bronze medal ended as Iran walked away with a 2-0 result against the hosts in the fight for third place.
Former UAE players Alia Abdulla Taher and Fatma Al Janahi teamed up to win the women’s crown. In the semi-finals, Alia and Fatma first secured a 6-0, 6-1 win against Sara Bin Kazim and Shaikha Al Janahi, while Fatma Shahdoor and Maryam Shahdoor won 6-3, 6-3 against Mariya Ibrahim Bin Karam and Aisha Shahdoor.
Then in the final, it was nearly one-way going with Alia and Fatma walking away easy winners 6-2, 6-1 against Fatma and Maryam Shahdoor.
The boy’s under-18 final was also contested with Ahmed Al Hashmi Ismaeel and Martin Martinez walking away with the title with a 6-4, 6-4 victory against Rashid Walid and Haider Ali.
Earlier in the semi-finals, Ahmed Al Hashmi Ismaeel and Martinez had defeated Saif Talal Al Hammadi and Qasem Al Sharafi 6-0, 6-3, while Rashid Wali and Haider Ali had beaten Fahad Al Hooli and Hamad Al Kokhardi 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.
The Wheelchair Basketball tournament is the next major event to commence with the first match being held at the Dubai Club for People of Determination in Al Ghusais, from March 20 till 28.
Next up on the agenda will be the cycling races on March 22-23 followed by the volleyball competition that will also get under way at the main hall of the Nad Al Sheba Sports Complex, from March 22.