| Libyan children cheer their team during their soccer match against Sudan at the Arab Games 2011 in Doha yesterday. Sudan won 1-0 |
Ali Jalei wins 8-ball showdown with AbdulmajeedIn a showdown between two of the best players in the competition, Iraq’s Ali Ali Jalei got the better of Qatar’s Bashar Abdulmajeed with a 7-4 win in their second-round battle in 8-ball pool singles on Sunday.Ali Jalei took an early lead at the Qatar Billiards and Snooker Federation thanks to his ability to pot with his break shot and then clear the table. However, Abdulmajeed had a great chance to cut his rival’s lead, while behind 6-4, but failed to snooker him. The Iraqi potted the seven ball and the black to clinch the match.“I knew that Bashar was going to make a run at some point so I was determined to find answers in everything he came up with at the table”, said Ali Jalei.The most exciting match of the day was between Jordan’s Jalal Odetalah and Lebanon’s Mazen Berjaoui. They exchanged some great shots, but in the end Odetalah held his nerve to win 7-6.
Egypt to vault for double gloryMohamed Elsaharty will be going for his second gold of the Arab Games in the men’s individual all-around final at the Aspire Dome today.The 21-year-old led Egypt to the men’s team title on Saturday, topping the list of 15 qualifiers. Wajdi Bouallegue looks likely to be Elsaharty’s closest rival but the battle for podium places will be tough as only 0.1 points separated the Tunisian from Qatari favourite Al Sadi Mahmood and Algerian Hillal Metidji in qualification.Elsaharty will expect to gain good scores in the vault and high bar while Bouallegue’s strengths are the parallel bars and floor. Mohamed Hacib, Algeria’s top gymnast, will not compete in the final. The 20-year-old could only complete three of the six exercises in qualification due to a fever.The women’s individual all-around final will also feature an Egyptian favourite in the shape of Salma El Said.El Said, 20, led qualification on Sunday and will look to capitalise on the absence through injury of defending champion Katja El Halabi of Lebanon by claiming her country’s first gold in the event. Sixteen-year-old Qatari Shaden Wohdan looks set to be the Egyptian’s strongest challenger, and the host nation has a second medal shot in Al Jazy Al Habachi.El Said’s teammate Aya Mahgoub should also be in the hunt while Lahna Salam carries Algeria’s hopes.
Young guns out to shoot down favourite
At 23, Egypt’s Tarek Momen is hardly an old stager but the the highest-ranked participant in the men’s squash competition will face strong challenges from a string of younger, upcoming players when the action gets under way at Khalifa International Complex today.Momen is ranked No. 20 in the world, having slipped one slot in the standings in the last month. At the head of the pack out to derail the favourite’s gold medal bid will be 20-year-old fellow Egyptian Karim Abdelgawad who sits at No. 44 in the standings. Two other young guns who could threaten Momen’s dominance are 21-year-old Abdullah Almezayen of Kuwait and Jordanian Ahmad Alzabidi, 20, who are ranked 102nd and 149th respectively. There is also a chance the host nation will claim a medal. Great things are expected of Qatari prodigy Abdulla Al Tamimi and the world No. 164 might just have an extra reason to celebrate his 17th birthday when the men’s final takes place on 15 December.
C’ship course set to test Arab golfers The challenging par-72 championship course at Doha Golf Club will host the 2011 Arab Games men’s and women’s tournaments from 13-16 December, with gold medals up for grabs in both individual and team events for each gender. The course was designed by world-renowned Peter Harradine and officially opened in 1997. It hosts the annual Qatar Masters, a PGA European Tour event first won in 1998 by Scotland’s Andrew Coltart, and the course is known for its unforgiving, rocky rough and water features designed to penalise errant shots, while the greens are slick and many are only small targets.Men’s golf has been held only twice previously at the Arab Games: at Rabat in 1985, where Morocco’s Mohammed al-Motib won gold, and 12 years later in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, where Amro Abou El Moula from Egypt came first and countryman Ramy Taher grabbed bronze. Egypt also claimed the team gold medal in 1997 ahead of Lebanon and Bahrain.Egypt will again expect to top the 40-man field here in Doha, with national amateur champion Amr Abouelela leading teammates Issa Abouelela, Mamdouh El Sheikh and Ecuadorian-born Soliman Elaasser. Seventeen-year-old Qatari local, Ali Abdulla al-Bishi, will also be a player to watch. In 2010, the Aspire student finished third in the silver category of the Junior Open Golf Championships in Scotland. Doha will see a first in Arab Games golf with 15 women also slated to tee-off tomorrow morning.