Dubai: Yet another Olympic Games is here and the UAE will once again be banking on the shooters to deliver the country a second medal in the ninth time they are participating in an Olympics.
The UAE made its foray into the Olympic Games when they sent a squad of seven for the 1984 Los Angeles Games.
And 20 years later it was Shaikh Ahmad Hasher Al Maktoum, who delivered a golden moment in the sporting annals of this young nation when he finished ahead of Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore of India in the double trap shooting in Athens 2004.
Shaikh Ahmad failed to defend his crown in Beijing four years later as he finished seventh after qualifying for the finals. In London 2012, the UAE champion turned mentor while helping hosts Great Britain to a rare shooting gold in double trap when his understudy Peter Wilson triumphed with a score of 188.
The UAE has barely done enough attempting to scale the heights that were seen following Shaikh Ahmad’s historic achievement in Greece 12 years back.
Last time in London, the UAE was represented by 26 athletes — the football team included and three shooters — with Shaikh Saeed Bin Maktoum Al Maktoum featuring in the men’s skeet discipline while Shaikh Juma Bin Dalmouk Al Maktoum was in the double trap.
Shaikh Saeed ended up finishing 13th and Shaikh Juma fell by the wayside during qualifying to end any hopes for the UAE replicating another Olympic moment.
This time, the UAE will be sending 13 athletes representing the country in six different individual sports for the Rio Games. Making the occasion even more historic will be teenage swimmer Nada Al Badwawi as she has been handed the honour of carrying the flag at the opening ceremony on August 5.
For sure, much of the attention will be on the shooters from the UAE as this has been one sport that has come so naturally to the athletes of this country. However, given the field and the slew of altered rules aimed at making the competition more interesting and spectator-friendly, it will need pinpoint accuracy and concentration for the UAE to land its second Olympic medal.
All eyes on Saeed
Marking his fifth successive Olympic Games, much will be expected from Shaikh Saeed as he spearheads the UAE’s challenge once again in the skeet shooting discipline.
Along with him will be Saif Khalifa Bin Futais, also in the skeet, while Khalid Al Ka’abi will complete the shooting squad while participating in the double trap.
“From London 2012, we had a plan in mind and I think we have succeeded in this. The idea was to give our shooters a head start in preparing and qualifying for Rio. We started early, and this is one of the huge advantages they have had this time. Since then, they have shown their quality while qualifying,” Rabea Al Awadhi, Vice-President, UAE Shooting Federation, told Gulf News. “Much of the credit needs to go to Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Sports Council. I am sure our shooters will make a difference in Rio,” he added.
Hope on judokas
Also tipped heavily to bring home some silverware will be the trio of naturalised Moldovan judokas — Victor Scvortov (men’s 73kg), Sergiu Toma (men’s 81kg) and Ivan Remarenco (men’s 100kg) categories.
All three have the age advantage, but what perhaps is even more determining is the added hunger for medals after they were barred from competing under the UAE flag at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games.
“We have left no stone unturned to ensure all three of our athletes are in the best of form, be it physically or mentally. All of them have won medals at various international competitions, but it is the Olympic Games that they are expected to do well and deliver,” Nasser Al Tamimi, General Secretary, UAE Wrestling, Judo and Kickboxing Federation, told Gulf News.
“Our team is all set to go. All of them will be in Rio to fight for a medal. Time and again, they have told us that they have this feeling deep within that they can sense medals in Rio. If you ask me personally, then I think Toma and Victor look certain for medals, but Ivan too is a very strong judoka and he can easily make it three medals this time,” Al Tamimi confided.
The track and field will also have three athletes from the UAE — Alia Saeed Mohammad in the women’s 10,000 metres, Betlhem Desalegn in the 1,500 metres and Saud Al Za’abi with a wild card in the men’s 1,500 metres run.
The rest of the UAE squad will have two swimmers — Yaqoub Al Sa’adi from Al Ain in the men’s 100m backstroke and Nada Al Badwawi in 50-metre freestyle — road cyclist Yousuf Mirza and weightlifter Aisha Al Beloushi in the women’s 58kg category.
Ahmad Al Tayeb, Director, Technical and Sports Affairs, UAE NOC, will be the Chef de Mission, while the official delegation will include Abdul Rahman Al Owais, Vice-President and Chairman of the Executive Board, UAE NOC; Mohammad Al Kamali, General Secretary, UAE NOC; Ahmad Al Raisi, Head of the Olympic Planning Committee; and Abdul Mohsin Al Dossary, Head of the Technical Commission, among others.
