UAE strike first medal in equestrian

UAE clinched their first medal in the maiden Islamic Solidarity Games under way in Saudi Arabia yesterday. Rider Meftah Al Dhahry brought fame to his country and himself as the first UAE athlete to win a medal in the Games.

Al Dhahry won the bronze medal in equestrian [speed race] on the horse Ekiya. It was the first race of the equestrian event which will continue until Thursday.

The bronze medal was expected as the equestrian team has the best medal prospects among the four events in which UAE taking part. UAE are also participating in swimming, karate and athletics.

The competition in the other three events will be very tough with 55 countries participating in the Games held in four Saudi cities of Makkah, Al Madina, Jeddah and Al Taiff.

The speed race was a tough race with the Saudi Arabian and UAE riders competing powerfully to win the medals. Khalid Al Eid won the gold with 74.81 seconds on the horse Al Riyadh. It was not a surprise for Al Eid, who won a silver medal in the last Olympics.

Kamal Ba Hamdan, also of Saudi Arabia, came second with 77.25 while Al Dhahry clinched the bronze at 79.06 seconds.

The UAE champion expressed his happiness with the bronze medal. "I entered the race to win the gold medal, but the error which I have made in the last step made me settle for the third place."

Al Dhahry claimed that the third place is good among the Kuwaitis who are Olympics champions.

"I think we can do better in the coming races. We have a good chance to add more medals for the UAE."

Obaid Ahmad, who represented the UAE in Athens, was a big failure in swimming when he finished in the eighth and last place in the swimming qualifiers.

Meanwhile in soccer, Iran trounced Tajikistan 9-0 and Oman beat Sudan 4-1.

In basketball, Saudi Arabia beat Azerbaijan 65-58, Kuwait beat Yemen 104-94 and Algeria beat Pakistan 132-44.