Four Asian records broken on the third day of competition DUBAI, 10th March: India and Iran sparkled in chilly conditions to break four Asian records on the third day of the inaugural IPC Athletics Asia-Oceania Championships Dubai 2016 on Wednesday 9th March. Iran had a field day by adding two more golds medals to their tally of six to top the standings ahead of India who have six golds. Nour Mohammad Arekhi (F11) set the tone as the Championship began on schedule despite the inclement weather by taking gold in the men’s discus throw F11-13 with a throw of 35.16m (835 points), shattering a mark which had stood since 2002 by 3.53 metres. Mahnaz Amini Nogourani (F57) improved on her own Asian record in the women’s shot put (F56/57) throwing 8.10m (651 points). UAE won a silver medal through Mariam Matroushi in the women’s Javelin Throw (F46) taking their medal tally to seven in this Championship being held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Sports Council (DSC). However, Indian athletes stole the limelight by scorching the track at the Dubai Police Officer’s Club stadium in Jadaf. India’s ‘blade’ runner Anandan Gunasekaran powered past Sri Lankan Ajith Hettiarachchi to win the men’s 400m T44 in a new Asian record of 54.67 shattering the mark of 54.82 set by China's Zhiming Liu at the London Games in 2012. The 28-year-old military officer from Karnataka was elated after his triumph and almost breathless after bursting to the finish running on the outside lane. “I feel very good and very proud to get a gold medal for India,” said Gunasekaran who has already qualified for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. “I will give an even better performance at the Paralympic Games now. I felt very well before this competition,” said Gunasekeran who wants to run under 50 seconds.” “I will try to get under 50 seconds. I’ve been practising the 400m for only two months. Last month I ran 56 seconds at the Indian Nationals and after one month’s hard work I have run 54.67. I have many more months to practice,” he said oozing with confidence. India got their second Asian record on the track after Ramkaran Singh won the 5,000m T13. The 25-year-old silver medallist at the Incheon Asian Para Games (800m T13), raced against the clock to finish in 16:15.47 and eclipse the previous record of 16:33.87 held by Iran's Elahi Ali since 2006. "Rainy weather and lack of competition affected my overall timing," said Singh who has yet to qualify for Rio. "I feel very well but it was difficult with the rain and with just two runners. Actually basically my timing would have been with faster if there had been more competition." Indian coach Deepak Bhardwaj was confident four or five athetes would qualify for Rio. "We already have two Paralympians in Amit Kumar (Club Throw) and Devendra (Javelin). We will win several medals in Rio, at least two or three golds. Our preparations for the season have begun in Dubai and we hope to take part in Sharjah and Fazza competitions following this Championship," he said. Amit Kumar had to settle for silver in the Club Throw despite being the Asian record holder in this event. "I have already qualified for Rio since I’m the world number three. The weather affected my performance because my category is for severe injury. I’m happy getting a medal but my performance not up to expectations," said the 31 year-old from Haryana who suffered a spinal cord injury in 2007 and has won three medals in two Asian Para Games including gold in Incheon (Club Throw). Malaysia’s world champion Mohamad Ridzuan Mohamad Puzi stormed home to gold in the men’s 100m T36 but head coach Jaganathan Ramaswamy was not happy. "It was a poor timing. The cold weather affected him because he could not warm up because of rain," he said. "The race in Dubai was easy. He is still the fastest in Asia. " Saudi Arabia’s Hani Alnakhli (F33) won his second gold medal with a best effort of 8.74m (713 points) in javelin F33/34 to add to his victory in the men’s discus throw F33/34 on the opening day. “This is good preparation for me for Brazil where I will do shot put,” he said. The IPC Athletics Asia-Oceania Championships is organized and supervised by the Dubai Club for the Disabled with the support of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), the General Authority for Youth and Sports Welfare, the DSC and the UAE Paralympic Committee. The Official Sponsors of this Championship are as follows: Hamdan Bin Mohamed Heritage Center (HHC), Al Maktoum Foundation, Sheikha Maitha Centre for People with Special Needs, Dubai Health Authority (DHA), Falcon City, Dubai Municipality, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation, BMW and Dubai Investments. Dubai Sports TV is the media partner. It will be held until Saturday March 12th at the Dubai Police Officers Club in Jadaf. The competition is held from 3.30pm to 7.30pm daily. Athletes compete in distances from 100m, 200m, 400, 800m, 1,500m, 5,000m, 4x100m and 4x400m relay events on the track, and field events of shot put, discus, javelin, club throw, long jump, high jump and triple jump. The track and field events will be held in accordance with the rules and regulations of IPC Athletics....
Continue Reading...
India determined to return home with a minimum of 20 medals DUBAI, 9th March: Mohamed Hammadi clinched a second gold to lead UAE’s medal charge on day two of the first ever IPC Athletics Asia-Oceania Championships Dubai 2016 on Tuesday 8th March. The UAE star cruised to an easy victory in the men’s 800m T34 final easing up at the finish line in 1:56.91 outclassing Qatar’s Rashid Al Kubaisi (2:13.14) at the Dubai Police Officer’s Club stadium. UAE won three gold medals in addition to a silver and bronze on the second day of the competition being held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Sports Council (DSC). Salem Al Shehhi stormed to victory in the men’s 100m T54 final in an impressive time of 14.86 while his Emirati compatriot Rashed Al Dhaheri (15.14) edged out Japan’s Yuki Nishi (15.31) to take silver. “I am preparing for the Rio Paralympics and this win will give me confidence to do well in Brazil,” said Al Shehhi. Al Dhaheri clinched a gold in the men’s 1,500m T54, leading the from start to finish and win the Asia-Oceania title in 3:25.19. Hammadi, who won gold over 200m on Monday, did not exult over his victory but was focused on improving his timings. “I was feeling more comfortable in this race and wasn’t pushing too much since I was looking to see how I can develop performance in near future. I just arrived from London two days before the Championships after looking for a new chair with a new design,” said the 30-year-old world silver medallist who is determined to shine at this year’s Paralympic Games in Brazil. “I’m not looking to show there is too much difference between me and others. I’m sure about winning so I have don’t have to push myself but save my best for the future,” said the Asian record holder who slowed down at the finish. “I’m looking to improve myself, I’m not looking for times,” said Hammadi who also competes in the 100m and 400m T34 in this Championships. But their was disappointment for UAE’s ‘Superwoman’ Thuraya Al Zaabi who had to settle for bronze in the women’s Javelin Throw F34 event. “I did my maximum but I feel sad because in our category some athletes are standing and others like me are using wheelchair. This gives an unfair advantage to those standing because you cannot generate power while seated,” said UAE’s first woman Paralympian who has competed in Beijing and London Games. However, she was pleased with the high standard of competition. “This tournament is very strong because there are athletes from Malaysia and Australia which is good because they represent Asia and Oceania. The standard in this tournament is very high because everyone is trying to get points to qualify for the Olympics,” said Thuraya. India are determined to return home with a minimum of 20 medals with Prasanna Kumar (men’s javelin F42) and world silver medallist Devendra (men’s javelin F46) striking gold on day two. “We have brought 20 athletes and want to win as much medals,” said Kumar (F42) who edged out of Indonesia’s Yohanes Bili (F44) in the men’s javelin F42/44 with a penultimate throw of 46.59m (876 points). Although he has already qualified for the Rio Paralympics after his performance at the IPC World Championships in Doha last year, Kumar was not optimistic of winning medals in Brazil. “It’s tough in Rio because unlike here there won’t be the Raaza system where points are given when lower category competes with higher category. In Rio only distance will count,” said the 37-year-old from Bangalore who is employed as an education co-ordinator in Karnataka. Kuwait won their first gold of the Championships through Dhari Buti (F37) in the men’s shot put F37/38 with a best throw of 11.49m (639 points). The IPC Athletics Asia-Oceania Championships is organized and supervised by the Dubai Club for the Disabled with the support of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), the General Authority for Youth and Sports Welfare, the DSC and the UAE Paralympic Committee. The Official Sponsors of this Championship are as follows: Hamdan Bin Mohamed Heritage Center (HHC), Al Maktoum Foundation, Sheikha Maitha Centre for People with Special Needs, Dubai Health Authority (DHA), Falcon City, Dubai Municipality, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation, BMW and Dubai Investments. It will be held until March 12th at the Dubai Police Officers Club in Jadaf with the participation of more than 250 athletes. The participating countries are China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, New Zealand, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, UAE, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, Kuwait, Fiji and India. The competition is held from 3.30pm to 7.30pm daily. Athletes compete in distances from 100m, 200m, 400, 800m, 1,500m, 5,000m, 4x100m and 4x400m relay events on the track, and field events of shot put, discus, javelin, club throw, long jump, high jump and triple jump. The track and field events will be held in accordance with the rules and regulations of IPC Athletics....
Continue Reading...
Hosts UAE lead Placing Table ahead of Japan with 41 points after 11 events DUBAI, 8th March: The first ever IPC Athletics Asia-Oceania Championships Dubai 2016 got off to a spectacular start on Monday 7th March when two Asian records were broken. Sri Lanka’s Anil Prasanna Jayalath Yodha Pedige sizzled in the men’s 200m T42 final shattering his own record while Vietnam’s Be Hau Nguyen set a new Asian mark in the men’s shot put F55/56. The Championship is being held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Sports Council (DSC). The Sri Lankan army commando scorched the track at the Dubai Police Officers Club stadium in Jadaf clocking 25.11 seconds, clipping his previous Asian record of 25.81 set in Qatar during the IPC World Championships last year by 0.76 seconds. The 30-year-old, a gold medallist in the 200m T42 event at the 2014 Asian Para Games in Incheon, South Korea, is determined to win a medal at the Rio Paralympic Games. “I was confident before coming to Dubai that I would but my main ambition is to improve my time before the Rio Paralympics. I want to win medal in Brazil,” said Jayalath who wants to lower his time to 24.3 before flying to Brazil. Atsushi Yamamoto of Japan took silver (26.83) while another Sri Lankan Buddika Indrapala (27.50) claimed the bronze medal in this event. Vietnamese Be Hau Nguyen improved the Asian record with a throw of 10.18m (780 points). Silver went to Mongolia’s Sambuudanzan Ganzorig with a best of 9.13m (610) while Iran’s Parviz Golpasandhagh took bronze (576 points). Hosts UAE also made an impressive start to the competiton with Mohamed Hammadi leading the medal charge with gold in the men’s 200m T34. Hammadi coasted to a victory in a time of 29.31 winning comfortably ahead of Kuwait’s Ahmad Almutairi (T33) and Qatar’s Mohammed Al Kubaisi (T34). “This is my first race for the season and my preparation for Rio Paralympics is beginning in Dubai,” said 30-year-old Hammadi, who hopes to race in the 100m and 800m in Brazil. Hammadi, a silver medallist at the World Championships in Qatar last year, is aiming for gold in the 100m, 400m and 800m T34 in Dubai. UAE topped the Placing Table after 11 of 111 events by securing 41 points ahead of Japan (34) and Iran (32) winning two bronze medals in addition to a gold medal. Ahmed Alhousani (F33) took bronze in the men’s discus throw F33/34 with 22.78m (592 points) while Saeed Mubarak came third (F36) with 607 points. There was more success for regional athletes with Iran topping the medal standings after day one with two gold medals and a silver. Hashemiyeh Motaghian Moavi (F56) won gold in the women’s javelin F55/56 (690 points) while Seyed Javanmardi (F35) won the men’s shot put F35/36 with a best of 13.21m (865 points). Japan are lying in second position with five medals after dominating the podium in the men’s 1,500m T20 won by Daisuke Nakagawa in 4:08.03. China picked up the first gold of the day as Ming Xin took gold in the men’s 100m T35, crossing the line in 15.70. Saudi Arabia’s Hani Alnakhli (F33) topped the podium in the men’s discus throw F33/34 with a throw of 27.44m (828 points) ahead of Qatar’s Abdulrahman Abdulrahman (F34) who threw 30.72m (619 points). “My preparations for the Rio Paralympic Games in Brazil begins in Dubai. I’m coming back from an injury and am glad to win the gold medal in the first Asia-Oceania Championships. This has given me confidence of qualifying for the Paralympic Games,” said world record holder Alnakhli. Iraq took gold and silver in the men’s javelin F40/41 with Ahmed Naas (F40) throwing a best of 35.75m (1017 points). Jabbar Al-Azzawi (F35) (673 points) claimed the silver. “I have already qualified for Rio and I’m using this Championship in Dubai as a preparation,” said Naas. The IPC Athletics Asia-Oceania Championships is organized and supervised by the Dubai Club for the Disabled with the support of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), the General Authority for Youth and Sports Welfare, the DSC and the UAE Paralympic Committee. The Official Sponsors of this Championship are as follows: Hamdan Bin Mohamed Heritage Center (HHC), Al Maktoum Foundation, Sheikha Maitha Centre for People with Special Needs, Dubai Health Authority (DHA), Falcon City, Dubai Municipality, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation, BMW and Dubai Investments. It will be held until March 12th at the Dubai Police Officers Club in Jadaf with the participation of more than 250 athletes. The participating countries are China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, New Zealand, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, UAE, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, Kuwait, Fiji and India. The competition is held from 3.30pm to 7.30pm daily. Athletes compete in distances from 100m, 200m, 400, 800m, 1,500m, 5,000m, 4x100m and 4x400m relay events on the track, and field events of shot put, discus, javelin, club throw, long jump, high jump and triple jump. The track and field events will be held in accordance with the rules and regulations of IPC Athletics....
Continue Reading...
UAE Disabled Sports Federation...
Continue Reading...
UAE Disabled Sports Federation...
Continue Reading...
UAE Disabled Sports Federation...
Continue Reading...
UAE Disabled Sports Federation...
Continue Reading...
