Individual skeet gold medalist Rashid Saleh Al-Athba (centre) of Qatar, silver medallist L Jianlin (left) of China and bronze winner L Meng-Yuan of Chinese Taipei celebrate on the podium. (XINHUA)
Doha, Qatar: Rashid Saleh Al Athba led Qatar’s golden day at the Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 yesterday, helping the team win men’s team skeet gold before adding the individual title with a new Asian record.
Al Athba teamed up with Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah and Ali Ahmed Al Ishaq as Qatar dominated the team event, leading from the opening round to the last and finishing with 353 hits. Kuwait took silver with 348, while India claimed bronze with 346.
Al Athba then produced another standout performance in the individual competition, hitting 34 targets to set a new Asian record. Kazakhstan’s Eduard Yechshenko had held the previous mark of 33, set in January this year.
China’s Lyu Jianlin took silver with 33 hits, while Chinese Taipei’s Lee Meng-Yuan claimed bronze with 29. Al Attiyah finished fifth.
The two gold medals lifted Qatar’s medal tally to four - two gold, one silver and one bronze - after the national karate team had opened the country’s account with Abdulrahman Abdulhamid’s silver and Abdullah Rashad Mohi El Din Babiker’s bronze.
Olympic Council of Asia President H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani presented Qatar’s shooting team with the team gold medal, adding to a memorable day for the country’s shooters.
Al Athba, who won both team and individual gold, dedicated the achievement to Qatar’s leadership and people.
“Praise be to Allah, we succeeded in winning the team gold medal alongside Nasser Al Attiyah and Ali Al Ishaq, and I was also able to win the individual gold,” he said. “It is a major achievement that I am extremely proud of.”
The shooter said the competition had been particularly demanding.
Qatar’s Rashid Saleh Al-Athba competes in the men’s skeet final. (AFP)
“The level of competition was extremely high. The Asian Games are considered one of the toughest competitions, particularly as the conditions surrounding the event were not easy,” said Al Athba, who also claimed gold at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup in Hangzhou in July.
“We knew how strong the competition would be, so we gave everything we had and maintained a high level of concentration.”
Al Attiyah, competing after a period away from the sport, was equally pleased with the team success.
“Praise be to Allah for winning the team gold medal. I congratulate my teammate Rashid Al Athba on winning gold in the individual competition,” he said.
The Dakar Rally champion, who is 55, said he had returned to competition after trials two months ago and felt he had more to give.
“I have not yet reached 100 percent of my level, and I am working to prepare myself better for the next challenge, particularly the World Shooting Championships in Doha, which will serve as a qualifier for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games,” Al Attiyah said.
It was Al Attiyah’s third Asian Games gold, following his victories in 2002 and 2010, and his sixth medal at the Games overall.
He also won skeet bronze at the 2012 London Olympics.
Qatar reach 3x3 basketball quarters
Away from the shooting range, Qatar’s 3x3 basketball team continued its impressive campaign by beating Bahrain 21-15 to reach the quarter-finals with a third successive victory.
Action during the match between Qatar and Bahrain in men's 3x3 basketball event. Qatar won 21-15.
After opening with wins over Indonesia and Chinese Taipei, Qatar completed a clean sweep in the group against Bahrain and will face the winners of Mongolia and Singapore today.
“It was a difficult match against Bahrain, but thankfully we managed to secure the victory and qualify for the quarter-finals,” said team manager Yassin Ismail.
“We know the next stage will be more difficult, but we will give everything we have.”
Meanwhile, Qatar’s second beach volleyball team also maintained its winning run, with Mousa Al Khair and Ehab Mohammed defeating Sri Lanka 2-1 in Group D. The Qatari pair, who had earlier beaten Republic of Korea, won 21-10, 16-21, 15-10 to claim their second straight victory.
Qatar's Mousa Al Khair and Ehab Mohammed claimed another victory in beach volleyball.
Al Tamimi enters last-16
In squash, Abdulla Al Tamimi made a winning start, beating Mongolia’s Yesun Otgonchimeg 3-0 (11-3, 11-2, 11-2) in 15 minutes to reach the Round of 16. He faces Japan’s Ryunosuke Tsukue today.
Salem Al Malki, meanwhile, exited after a 3-0 loss to Republic of Korea’s Na Joo-young.
Swimming also saw Ali Tamer reach the 200m freestyle final after clocking 1:48.66 in the heats. He finished sixth in the final in 1:48.00.
Swimming action continues at Asian Games.
Qatar’s esports campaign ended with Rashid Al Oulan finishing seventh in Gran Turismo 7 after reaching the semi-finals.
The eFootball team also ended its group-stage campaign after defeats to Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia and Iran.
