Author: ArabianRecords.org

TUNISIA : PARIS OLYMPICS 2024: Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi wins bronze in taekwondo at Paris 2024

The 22-year-old backs up his silver-medal winning heroics from Tokyo with more Olympic glory.

Tunisia’s Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi went through his full repertoire of tricks to seal bronze in the men’s taekwondo -58kg category at  Paris 2024 on Wednesday.

Remarkably, Jendoubi, the silver medallist at the same weight from the Tokyo Games, now has two Olympic medals in his collection at just 22 years old. He also won bronze at the 2022 World Championships and is the reigning African champion.

He was denied a shot at gold – or another silver – by defeat to Park Tae-joon of South Korea in the semi-finals.

Instead, he found himself in the bronze medal match against the second seed Adrian Vicente of Spain, who had earlier beaten Palestine’s Omar Ismail in the Round of 16.

Vicente edged in front with a punch to lead 1-0, but Jendoubi responded in emphatic fashion and led for the remainder of the contest.

Two scoring head kicks, one awarded after review, along with two body kicks and a penalty saw him take the first round 11-3.

The second round was initially closer but Jendoubi edged 2-0 in front with a scoring kick to the trunk.

A head kick, followed by another scoring shot to the trunk, stretched his advantage to 7-0 and all but sealed the win.

At that point he showcased all his skills as he put on a show in the closing stages to seal a 12-1 victory in the round – and with it a bronze medal.

It was Tunisia’s second medal of these Games following fencer Fares Ferjani’s superb silver in the men’s individual sabre.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s Dunya Abutaleb narrowly missed out on a historic bronze in the women’s -49kg category.

Abutaleb, who was bidding to become the Kingdom’s first ever female Olympic medallist, lost 2-0 in the bronze medal contest against Iran’s Mobina Nematzadeh.

The Iranian sneaked the first round 3-0 with a head kick with just seconds left on the clock.

Abutaleb, 27, thought she was on course to level the match but her appeal for a head kick of her own wasn’t upheld in the second round.

Nematzadeh then contorted impressively to land a scorpion kick and seal her bronze medal in style.

Earlier in the day, Palestine’s Ismail was defeated in the men’s -58kg Round of 16 – but not before pushing the experienced Vicente close.

UAE-based Ismail, who lives in Sharjah, was seconds away from taking the match into a deciding round.

After losing the first round 8-3, Ismail led the second 6-3 with 10 seconds remaining, but a head kick from Vicente in the final exchanges turned the contest back in the Spaniard’s favour.

Considering the pedigree of his opponent – Vicente won bronze at last year’s World Championships – Ismail, 18, proved he can challenge the best in the sport.

Ismail had earlier made a winning start to his campaign with a 2-0 victory over Hadi Tiranvalipour of the Refugee Olympic Team.

Ismail won the first round 4-3 to take an early lead and followed it up with a 5-0 second-round victory to book his place in the Round of 16.

source/content: thenationalnews.com (headline edited)

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Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi celebrates with his coaches after claiming a bronze medal. Getty Images

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TUNISIA

JORDAN: PARIS OLYMPICS 2024 : Zaid Mustafas’s first silver medal in Taekwondo at Paris Olympics

Zaid Mustafa of the national taekwondo team has clinched the silver medal in the men’s under-68 kg category at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. 

On Thursday evening, HRH Prince Feisal bin Hussein, president of the Jordan Olympic Committee and member of the Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee, presented Mustafa with his medal.

Prince Feisal congratulated Mustafa on his achievement, which was Jordan’s first medal at the Paris Games, and praised his exceptional performance throughout the competition.

Mustafa’s win adds to Jordan’s growing Olympic legacy, adding to the Kingdom’s previous gold, silver and bronze medals from the last three Olympiads.

source/content: jordantimes.com (headlines edited)

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Mustafa’s win adds to Jordan’s growing Olympic legacy (Petra photo)

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JORDAN

ALGERIA : PARIS OLYMPICS 2024: Kaylia Nemour wins Algeria’s first gymnastics gold at Paris Olympics 2024

The 17-year-old outscored China’s Qiu Qiyuan and USA’s Sunisa Lee in the uneven bars final for Algeria’s first medal in Paris.

Algerian teenager Kaylia Nemour wept tears of joy as she became the first African athlete to win an Olympic gymnastics medal with gold on the uneven bars in Paris, outshining several big names in the competition and registering her country’s first medal at the 2024 Olympic Games.

The 17-year-old French-born athlete’s breathtaking routine wowed the crowd in at the Bercy Arena on Sunday and helped her bag the title ahead of China’s Qiu Qiyuan, with Team USA’s Sunisa Lee snatching bronze. Defending Olympic uneven bars champion Nina Derwael of Belgium finished fourth.

Nemour was under pressure after Qiyuan posted a score of 15.500 with an immaculate routine, but the rising star of gymnastics outperformed the Chinese gymnast with an exceptionally difficult routine to finish with a score of 15.700.

The Algerian’s fast-paced routine, featuring a number of complex release-and-catch manoeuvres, delighted the crowd.

As soon as she landed, Nemour was in tears, knowing she had perhaps done enough to land her country’s first-ever gold in gymnastics and first medal of the Paris Olympics.

‘Performance of my life’

Emotions ran high for the young gymnast when her triumph was confirmed and she draped herself with the Algerian flag before stepping up to soak in the applause.

“I’m so shocked, it’s the dream of all my life. I can’t believe it has happened, I’m speechless,” said Nemour.

“In qualifying I had 15.600, when I saw her 15.500 I said, I really had to fight and gave the performance of my life,” said the Algerian.

“It’s crazy. I’m honoured to have this medal after all that has happened. It’s a relief.”

Nemour has competed for Algeria since last year after a dispute with the French gymnastics federation, but found plenty of support at the Bercy Arena.

source/content: aljazeera.com (headline edited)

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Kaylia Nemour was in tears upon planting her feet after her routine [Loic Venance/AFP]

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ALGERIA / FRENCH

ALGERIA : PARIS OLYMPICS 2024 : Djamel Sedjati takes bronze in 800m final as Algeria have their best Olympics

Runner clinches third place and joins gold medallists Kelif and Nemour.

Djamel Sedjati won a bronze medal in the 800m final in Paris on Saturday to help Algeria to achieve their most successful Olympic Games.

He joins gold medal winners Kaylia Neymour and Imane Khelif on the podium at these Games.

Pre-race favourite Sedjati was beaten by Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi and world champion Marco Arop of Canada at the Stade de France on Saturday night.

Wanyonyi clocked a personal best of 1 min 41.19 secs, with Arop taking silver just one-hundredth of a second behind in a North American record. Sedjati finished in 1:41.50.

After the race, Wanyonyi, 20, said: “This race was tough for me. I felt more pressure because I knew it’s not easy. Sedjati is not easy (to beat), he’s a tough guy.”

Sedjati said: “I won the bronze medal, but I wanted the gold medal.

“It was a very fast race. I didn’t start very well, but I’m very happy with the medal after the medals from Kaylia Nemour in gymnastics and Imane Khelif in boxing.

“I’m very proud to bring home the third medal for Algeria. It’s one of the fastest Olympic finals in history, with four runners on 1:41. I already did my maximum to ensure I got on the podium. I’m happy with this bronze medal.”

Boxer Khelif defeated China’ Yang Liu to win the final of the women’s 66kg division to take gold on Friday night.

The 25-year-old, who has seen her campaign in Paris overshadowed by a gender controversy, defied her critics as she comprehensively outboxed Yang to earn a richly deserved unanimous decision in front of thousands of noisy Algerian fans at Roland Garros.

Khelif, who only started boxing eight years ago, scored again and again with her jab and backed it up with her signature straight right hand as she swept all three rounds 5-0 for the biggest win of her career.

“I’m very happy. For eight years this has been my dream and I’m now the Olympic champion and gold medallist,” said Khelif. “I’ve worked for eight years, no sleep, eight years tired. Now I’m Olympic champion.

“I want to thank all the people who have come to support me. All the people from Algeria and all the people at my base. I want to thank all the team, my coach. Thank you so much.”

Nemour produced “the performance of her life”  to become the first Algerian and African to win an Olympic gymnastics medal with gold on the uneven bars on Sunday.

The 17-year-old took the title ahead of China’s Qiu Qiyuan, with American Sunisa Lee snatching bronze with the final performance of the session. Defending champion Nina Derwael of Belgium finished fourth.

“I’m so shocked, it’s the dream of all my life. I can’t believe it has happened, I’m speechless,” said Nemour.

source/content: thenationalnews.com (headline edited)

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Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati with his bronze medal after the 800m final at Stade de France on August 10, 2024. Getty Images

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ALGERIA

MOROCCO : PARIS OLYMPICS 2024 : Morocco Celebrates Gold as Soufiane El Bakkali Triumphs in 3,000m Steeplechase

Morocco’s Mohamed Tindouflt finished in 12th place.

In a spectacular finale at the Paris 2024 Olympics, Moroccan runner Soufiane El Bakkali delivered an unsurprising and outstanding performance, securing the gold in the men’s 3,000m steeplechase.

El Bakkali crossed the finish line first with a time of 8:06:05.

El Bakkali demonstrated remarkable resilience during the race, initially starting in fifth and fourth positions.

Despite the challenging beginning, the Moroccan runner advanced through the field.

Throughout the rounds, Ethiopian runners dominated the competition.

El Bakkali however moved between third and fourth positions and also faced other challenges that saw him in seventh position, but he surged forward in the final minutes to do what he has always done for the past years.

Meanwhile, Mohamed Tindouft finished in 12th place. But the Moroccan representative did also show positive signs and was able to lead the race in the last minutes.

The second position was clinched by the US runner, Kenneth Rooks with a time of 8:06:41. Kenya’s  Kibiwot was fourth and was followed by Tunisia’s Jhinaoui.

Soufiane Bakkali’s historic podium finish has brought immense pride and celebration to Morocco, marking a significant achievement after several heartbreaking defeats and early exits by Moroccan representatives at the Paris Olympics.

El Bakkali won two gold medals at the World Athletics Championships, triumphing in both 2022 and 2023.

His long list of achievements includes a third-place finish at the 2019 African Games and a second-place finish at the 2018 African Championships.

At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, El Bakkali secured gold in his specialty event with a time of 8:08.90, finishing ahead of Ethiopia’s Girma and Kenya’s Benjamin Kigen.

source/content: moroccoworldnews.com (headline edited)

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Morocco’s champion Soufiane Bakkali

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MOROCCO

TUNISIA : PARIS OLYMPICS 2024 : Firas Katoussi beats Barkhordari to give Tunisia taekwondo gold

Firas Katoussi of Tunisia created history as he defeated Iranian fighter Mehran Barkhordari, who upset Alessio in the quarterfinals, to claim the gold medal in the 80kg category of Taekwondo at the Paris Olympics.

In a cagey first round, the taller Katoussi did a very good job at thwarting Nickolas’ attacks and won it by a judge decision. Nickolas took all the risks in the second round, but Katoussi landed a body kick with only two seconds left that sealed his victory.

Nickolas began his tournament against Farzad Mansouri — an athlete from Afghanistan who competes for the Refugee Olympic Team.

Nickolas looked pumped as he entered the venue. He shouted and made a few dance moves, then threw himself into the fight.

On the eve of his taekwondo competition at the Paris Olympics, after slumbering for two weeks on a cardboard bed at the athletes village, Nickolas made sure he would sleep like a baby.

He booked a room in a hotel near the Grand Palais, the lavish building where taekwondo events are held.

“I slept on these cardboard beds, and then last night I had one of the best sleeps of my life,” Nickolas said.

The improved bedding did not have the desired effect. The 23-year-old Nickolas looked well-rested and started his journey on a high-octane pace but lost in the semifinals of the 80-kilogram tournament. Nickolas was then defeated by world champion Simone Alessio in a bronze-medal contest.

The US team did not end the day empty-handed, though. Teammate Kristina Teachout, who was beaten in the quarterfinals of the women’s 67-kilogram division, recovered in style to win a bronze medal after going through a repechage phase.

“I’ll probably cry about it later, but I’m so grateful,” Teachout said. “This is the culmination of everything that’s important to me and all that I’ve put into my craft.”

The 18-year-old Teachout grabbed a US flag and celebrated her medal by running around the octagonal-shaped combat area, warmly embracing her coach.

Teachout had defeated Anastasija Zolotic – the first US woman to win a gold medal in the sport in Tokyo – at the US Olympic trials.

Like Nickolas, Alessio failed to reach the final. He was given a second chance through repechage and set up a meeting with Nickolas that pitted the top two ranked athletes in the category against each other.

Nickolas, who lost to Alessio in the final at last year’s world championships, harassed his rival from the start with relentless attacking moves but could not find his target. Alessio was clinical. The Italian landed two kicks in each round and that was again to once again deny Nickolas.

“He’s a monster in the division and other people have gotten him and I just haven’t clicked that code yet,” said Nickolas, who started taekwondo when he was 3. “I’ve failed. And that’s what happened and it hurts.”

Teachout started her day with a bang in the women’s 67-kilogram event by taking out world champion Magda Wiet-Henin of France. But the 18-year-old from Palm Bay, Florida, then lost a tight encounter with Viviana Marton of Hungary,

She then beat Ruth Gbagbi of Ivory Coast in repechage and fought Song Jie of China for bronze. Song was conservative but Teachout seized all of her few opportunities in the first round and continued to apply a relentless pressure to win in two rounds.

“I’ve always had the harder route in sports,” said Teachout, who was slowed by a hamstring injury in her first year. “And even getting (this bronze). It wasn’t the best, it was the hardest route to get a medal. Having to go through the motions of losing and, you know, get it back together and fight. So yeah, it’s been an emotional journey.”

Agencies

source/content: gulftoday.ae (headline edited)

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Tunisia’s Firas Katoussi (centre) celebrates with his coaches after winning the gold medal in the men’s 80kg Taekwondo final match. Associated Press

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TUNISIA

QATAR: PARIS OLYMPICS 2024 :  Qatari Champion Mutaz Barshim Wins Men’s High Jump Bronze

Qatari champion Mutaz Barshim won the bronze medal in the Men’s High Jump at the Olympic Games Paris 2024.

Barshim successfully cleared a height of 2.34 meters, his best performance this season, securing third place behind American Shelby McEwen, who won the silver medal with a height of 2.36 meters, giving the best performance of his career, and New Zealand’s Hamish Kerr, who won the gold medal with a height of 2.36 meters.

With this achievement, Barshim became the first high jump athlete to ever win four medals across four Olympic Games, having won the gold medal at the Tokyo 2020, in addition to silver medals at Rio de Janeiro 2016 and London 2012.

Mutaz Barshim won Qatar its first medal at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and has become the most decorated Qatari athlete in Olympic history, with a total of four medals. (QNA)

source/content: qna.org.qa (headline edited)

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QATAR

EGYPT: PARIS OLYMPICS 2024: Egyptian Sara Samir Wins Silver Medal at Paris 2024 Olympics in Weightlifting

Egyptian weightlifter Sara Ahmed Samir has once again made Egypt proud, securing a silver medal in the 81kg Women’s Final at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Samir lifted a total of 268kg, marking an incredible achievement in her illustrious career and reinforcing her position as one of the sport’s leading athletes.

The 26-year-old’s performance included a snatch of 117kg and a clean and jerk of 151kg, surpassing her previous personal best of 148kg, which she set at the 2022 World Championships in Colombia.

Despite falling short of the top podium spot, Samir’s silver medal adds to her already impressive collection, which includes a bronze medal from the 2016 Rio Olympics and a gold medal from the 2022 World Championships.

The gold medal in the 2024 Paris Olympics event was claimed by Norway’s Solfrid Eila Amena Koanda, who set a new Olympic record with a total lift of 275kg, comprising 121kg in the snatch and 154kg in the clean and jerk. Ecuador’s Neisi Patricia Dájomes Barrera took home the bronze, narrowly missing out on the silver with a total lift of 267kg.

Samir’s journey in the final was marked by determination and resilience. After successfully lifting 113kg and 117kg in her first two snatch attempts, she narrowly missed out on her third attempt at 119kg. In the clean and jerk, she successfully lifted 146kg on her first attempt but was unable to complete her final lift at 155kg, which would have secured her the gold.

This silver medal represents Egypt’s second medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics, following Mohamed El-Sayed’s bronze in the men’s epee individual fencing event.

source/content: egyptianstreets.com (headline edited)

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EGYPT

BAHRAIN – PARIS OLYMPICS 2024: Silver for Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser in women’s 400m at Paris 2024

Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser said she had mixed emotions after claiming a silver medal in the women’s 400m on her Olympic debutdebut.

Eid Naser clocked 48.53 seconds on a wet night in Paris but was blown away by Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic who raced to gold in an Olympic record time of 48.17.

The Bahraini sprinter looked disappointed after the race but was never truly in the hunt for gold while also comfortably seeing off bronze medallist Natalia Kaczmarek of Poland who finished in 48.98.

Eid Naser has the full collection of medals – gold, silver and bronze – from World Championships but this was her first Olympics. She missed Tokyo because of a controversial ban for missed doping tests. The Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned the ban and she has made up for missed time with an Olympic medal.

But she said: “I cannot even begin to put into words what this means. I am happy and at the same time I am sad.”

Paulino, the gold medallist, said: “This is the best of my life, absolutely it is. I saw myself as very strong, I’ve worked so hard and now I have an Olympic record.

“For me this gold medal means a lot. It was the medal that I needed to complete an Olympic cycle and it is a medal that my country needed. The truth is that it was worth it because I think it will inspire many young people who are in a precarious situation. Many doors will open for them because of me.”

The Dominican entered the race as a big favourite having won gold at last year’s world championships in Budapest. However, this title, won in front of a crowd who cheered her all the way down the home stretch, will rank as the greatest of her career.

Meanwhile, Team USA’s Rai Benjamin won gold in the men’s 400m hurdles at the Stade de France as he saw off his ‘Big Three’ rivals.

The race was billed as a shoot-out between Benjamin, Norway’s Karsten Warholm and Brazil’s Alison dos Santos. And so it proved as they all grabbed a medal.

For Benjamin it was gold in 46.46secs, with Warholm (47.06) second and Dos Santos (47.26) third.

Qatar’s Abderrahman Samba came in sixth but was never in the mix for a medal.

Elsewhere, Egypt’s Ahmed Elgendy looked in fine form as he set an Olympic record points total in qualifying for the final of the men’s modern pentathlon.

Elgendy, the silver medallist from Tokyo, won his semi-final with a record tally of 1516 points.

The 24-year-old competed in fencing, riding, swimming and laser run, and topped his section with the best aggregate performance. He did struggle somewhat in the showjumping but more than made up for it elsewhere.

His compatriot Mohanad Shaban sneaked into the final. Shaban finished ninth in the second semi-final with only the top nine progressing to Saturday’s main event.

The final begins at 7:30pm UAE time on Saturday, with the climax being a laser run which starts at 9.10pm.

source/content: thenationalnews.com (headline edited)

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Women’s 400m silver medalist Salwa Eid Naser, of Bahrain, wipes away tears while standing on the podium. AP

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BAHRAIN

UNESCO adds 3 Arab sites to World Heritage List

The UNESCO World Heritage Committee, during its 46th session in New Delhi, India, announced the inclusion of three new Arab sites to the World Heritage List. The sites are the Monastery of Saint Hilarion/Tell Umm Amer in Palestine, Umm el Jimal City in Jordan, and the Cultural Landscape of Al Faw Archaeological Area in Saudi Arabia.

The Monastery of Saint Hilarion in Gaza is one of the oldest historical sites in the Middle East, while Umm el Jimal in Jordan showcases a Nabataean-Roman-Byzantine character and is notable for its inhabitants’ resilience in a water-scarce region. Saudi Arabia’s Al Faw Archaeological Area, a significant ancient human settlement, is now the eighth site in the Kingdom to be registered on the World Heritage List.

Prince Badr bin Farhan, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Culture, emphasised that the inscription of Al Faw aligns with Saudi Vision 2030, highlighting the Kingdom’s commitment to preserving global human heritage and promoting national identity.

“The Kingdom recognizes the importance of heritage, its preservation, and its promotion worldwide in order to establish a solid foundation for the present, chart a roadmap for future endeavors, and support the Heritage Commission in developing national heritage assets,” the Prince said.

Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, President of the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities and Chairman of the Arab Regional Centre for World Heritage (ARC-WH), congratulated the three countries on their achievement. He highlighted that this inclusion underscores the importance of Arab heritage on a global scale and reflects the growing interest in preserving the region’s cultural and natural heritage.

The inclusion of Tell Umm Amer was also simultaneously added to the List of World Heritage in Danger, amid the brutal genocidal war being waged on Gaza by the Israeli occupation forces.

source/content: middleeastmonitor.com (headline edited)