Alkass Digital
Abderrahman Samba bagged his second consecutive Asian Games gold, leading Qatar’s historic 1-2 in the men’s 400m hurdles final as Bassem Hemeida claimed silver in Hangzhou yesterday.
Samba, an Asian record holder, clocked a season best time of 48.04 secs to seal the victory with Bassem setting a personal best 48.52 secs to claim second place. China’s Zhiyu Xie, who clocked 49.16 secs, took bronze medal.
The two podium finishes in the 400m hurdles took Qatar’s tally to nine medals including three gold, four silver and two bronze medals.
Samba, who battled a series of injuries ahead of the Asian Games, was elated to end the season with a triumph.
Qatar's Abderrahman Samba crosses the finish line to win the men’s 400m hurdles final ahead of team-mate Bassem Hemeida. AFP
“I am very proud of this gold medal. I went through testing times because of a series of injuries and this victory means a lot to me. I am happy with my run and it’s a great motivation for me for the Paris Olympics,” the 28-year-old said.
“It’s a special achievement. Now we have two medals in 400m hurdles, that is really difficult at a world level,” Samba said of Qatar’s 1-2 yesterday.
For Bassem, who also won gold at the Asian Championships in Bangkok in July, the season was highly successful.
“It was a wonderful season for me as I also won Arab and Asian Championships titles. This Asian Games silver medal is special for me and a double delight for the team as we achieved a 1-2 finish. It’s a huge boost for us before the Olympics,” he said.
Team Qatar’s track and field athletes will compete for more medals today as three-time high-jump world champion Mutaz Barshim will be in action in the final eyeing his third Asiad gold at Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Stadium. The reigning Olympic champion eased into the final with a 2.19m jump in his first attempt. He is expected to get a tough challenge from South Korea’s Woo Sang-hyeok in the final.
Qatar’s quartet of Ammar Ibrahim, Ashraf Osman, Amar Ebed and Ismail Abakar will also look for a 4x400m medal after they qualified for the final finishing runners-up in their heat with an overall time of 3:05.92.
Also today, Qatar’s Mohamad Al Garni, who won 1500m gold on Sunday, will be in action in men’s 5000m final along with teammate Yaser Bagharab. Al Garni holds the Asian Games record of 13:26.13 in the event which he set at Incheon 2014.
Meanwhile, Abdirahman Hassan missed a medal in men’s 400m as he finished fourth after clocking 1:48.56 secs with Saudi Arabia’s Essa Ali Kzwani securing the gold with a slick 1:48.05 run yesterday.
India’s Mohammed Afsal Pulikkalakath (1:48.05) and Oman’s Husain Mohsin Husain Al Farsi (1:48.51) claimed silver and bronze in the event respectively.
At Zhejiang Gongshang University Sports Centre, defending champions Qatar booked place in the handball final after defeating Kuwait 29-24 yesterday.
It was a close semi-final as both the teams headed into the second half with scores of 12-12 following an exciting opening session.
Frankis Marzo (seven goals), Rafael Capote (five) and Eldar Memisevic (five) were the standout performers for Qatar.
Al Annabi will meet another GCC counterparts Bahrain, who defeated Japan 30-28 in the other semi-final, in a mouth-watering final tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Abdulla Al Tamimi maintained his fine run to outclass Malaysia’s Muhammad Addeen bin Bahtiar 11-2, 11-7, 11-2 in only 23 minutes at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre. The top ranked Qatar player will meet another Malaysian opponent Eain Yow NG in the semi-final today.
“It will be a tough semi-final but I am looking for a gold and give my best to reach final,” said Al Tamimi.
In equestrian, Qatar’s Bassem Hassan Mohammed, Faleh Al Ajmi, Sheikh Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani and Rashid Towaim Ali Al Marri will be seen in action in the individual and team events at Tonglu Equestrian Centre. The team event will be decided today while the final for individual events will be held on Friday.