Ahmad al-Haj will open Qatar’s athletics campaign at the Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires today. The 17-year-old will be competing in the Discus Throw. Al-Haj will be in action at 10:30pm Doha time today, and again in second round on Sunday at 8:15pm Doha time.
Al-Haj qualified for the Youth Olympics after topping the Asian qualifiers, where he hurled the discus at 61.28m. Other two athletes who will represent Qatar at Youth Olympics are Abdelaziz Mohamed in 200m and Owaab Barrow in 110m Hurdles. Both will be in action tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Mohamed Alqashouti failed to bring home a medal in the equestrian team competition. Australasia, for whom Alqashouti represented, finished fifth. Team North America and Team Europe battled for the gold medal in a nail-biting jump off, while Team Africa settled for the bronze.
Victory was no easy feat, with both teams fighting and producing the three clear rounds, which would count towards their final score of 0. It was all down to the speed with which the five riders from each team tackled the jump-off course. Both teams showed tremendous calm under pressure, but at the end of the day Team North America made the difference with some very speedy and precise performances, relegating Team Europe into a very respectable second place. The Individual competitions will be held on tomorrow and on Saturday.
Qatar’s Ahmad al-Haj trains with his coach in Buenos Aires yesterday.
