Qatar's Abdirahman Saeed Hassan in action in the men’s 1500m heat on the opening day of the 26th Asian Athletics Championships at the Gumi Civic Stadium in Gumi, South Korea, yesterday.
Doha, Qatar: Qatar athletes excelled on the opening day of the 26th Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, South Korea, shining across multiple disciplines.
In the men’s 400m at the Gumi Civic Stadium, Ammar Ismail Ibrahim impressed with a commendable show, winning the first semi-final in 46.05 seconds to book his spot in the final lined up for today.
Ibrahim reached the semi-finals following a comfortable win in Heat 4 with a time of 46.71 seconds.
His compatriot Ashraf Osman also advanced to the final of the one-lap contest despite finishing fourth in the second semi-final with a time of 46.12 seconds. Osman had earlier finished his heat in third position, clocking 46.92 seconds.
Meanwhile, in the men’s 100m heats, Qatar’s Salah Nur I A Yunis came third (Heat 3) with a time of 10.36 seconds to make it to the semi-finals.
Qatar made a strong statement in the men’s 1500m heats, with two athletes qualifying for the final.
Former Asian Indoor champion Abdirahman Saeed Hassan secured his spot in the final by finishing sixth in Heat 2 in 3:49.04, while Hatim Ait Oulghazi came sixth in Heat 1 with a time of 3:51.95 as both of them advanced to today’s final.
Qatar’s Hatim Ait Oulghazi (second left) in action in the men’s 1500m heat.
In today’s events, rising star Oumar Doudai Abakar is set to compete in the men’s 110m hurdles heats, while former Asian Games gold medallist Ashraf Amgad Elseify will aim for glory in the men’s hammer throw final.
At the end of the opening day, China led the medal tally after winning five gold medals and two silver medals.
Chinese athletes won the men’s and women’s 20km race walks, with both Wang Zhaozhao (men’s) and Yin Hang (women’s) establishing Championship records.
China’s Ji Li won the women’s hammer throw (72.98), Su Lingdan captured the women’s javelin throw gold (63.29), and Li Yi secured the women’s triple jump gold (13.80) to swell their medal tally.
India won the remaining gold, with Gulveer Singh securing victory in the men’s 10,000 meters.
With Servin Sebastian securing the bronze in the men’s 20km race walk, India are currently occupying the second spot in the medals table, followed closely by Japan in third, accumulating three silvers and two bronze medals.
The event marks South Korea’s return as hosts of the Asian Championships since the 2005 Incheon edition.
With over 2,000 athletes from 43 countries participating the event continue through May 31.
