Dubai: Emirati swimmer Yousuf Al Matrooshi had the basic goal of bettering his performance during the Paris Olympics and he achieved it with a personal best of 50.39 in the men’s 100-metre freestyle heats on Tuesday.
The 21-year-old Al Matrooshi, who has been preparing for the Paris Games for the last two years in USA, finished third behind Cypriot Nikolas Antoniou in Heat 4. The University of Michigan sophomore had achieved his best in the World Aquatics Championship in Doha earlier this year when he clocked under 51 for the first time in his career.
“I’m hoping to achieve a personal best in Paris. As a competitor, no matter how prepared you are, there is always something you are looking to improve. I’ve just completed my second year at University of Michigan, so in truth my preparations started when I made the move two years ago. So, I have been preparing myself to be a better swimmer for the past two years, with Paris as the main focus,” Al Matrooshi, who is pursuing International Studies as a major and Political Science as a minor, told Gulf News ahead of the race.
Al Matrooshi is part of a 14-member UAE contingent who will be taking part in five sports: showjumping, judo, swimming, cycling, and athletics.
In judo, Nugzari Tatalashvili lost in the under 81kg round of 32, losing to Puerto Rican Adrian Gandia in the other action on Tuesday.
More medal prospects
The UAE athletes, especially the judokas, were not able to reprise their recent form after Bishrelt Khorloodoi, who had won the Asian Championships gold, lost in the round of 16 in the 52kg women’s lightweight category on Sunday. Khorloodoi lost to German Mascha Ballhaus 0-11, while Narmandakh Bayanmunkh (under 66kg), another of UAE’s top medal prospects, lost to South Korea’s An Ba-ul 0-10 in the round of 32.
Swimmer Maha AlShehi finished fifth in the 200-metre freestyle heats behind India’s 14-year-old Dhinidhi Desinghu. The 18-year-old Olympic debutant finished ahead of another Saudi Arabian teenager, Mashael Meshar A Alayed.
UAE’s another judo medal hope, Aram Grigorian will be in action in the under 90kg category on Wednesday, while Dzhafar Kostoev in the under 100kg and the UAE show jumping team, who won the bronze in the Asian Championships, will be in action on Thursday. Omar Abdul Aziz Al Mazrooqi carries UAE’s hopes after his silver medal in the Asian Games, while Asian Games gold medallist Magomedomar Magomedomarov (over 100kg) is another top hope along with cyclist Safia Al Sayegh and sprinter Mariam Mohammed Al Farsi.
