Today's Edition
ABU DHABI (ALETIHAD)
The national archery team was on target for the UAE at the 4th GCC Games – Doha 2026, which concludes on Friday, adding nine medals: three gold, five silver and one bronze.
With these results, the UAE’s medal tally stands at 61 medals, comprising 13 gold, 19 silver and 29 bronze. The first gold came through the women’s compound team, comprising double gold medal winner Amna Al Awadhi with Joumana Al Najjar and Maitha Al Nuaimi.
The former also won the women’s individual compound event. Omar Al Ali added the third gold in the men’s individual recurve event. Al Najjar also added two silver medals to her kitty.
Al Najjar and Al Saedi joined hands to add silver in the compound mixed team event, while Joumana Al Najjar also claimed silver in the women’s individual compound event. The bronze medal came via Omar Al Ali and Hessa Al Awadhi in the recurve mixed team event.
Shehab Al Saedi had opened the UAE’s archery medal account by winning bronze in the men’s individual compound event. In the compound team event, the men’s squad of Yousef Al Hosani, Sultan Al Menhali and Shehab Al Saedi finished second on the podium
The men’s recurve team, featuring Saeed Al Dhuhoori, Omar Al Ali and Abdalla Al Ketbi, also claimed silver, while the women’s recurve team, comprising Hessa Al Awadhi, Fatima Al Blooshi and Maryam Al Sayegh took second place as well.
The UAE men’s padel team also won gold, while the women’s team claimed bronze in the team competition, adding another achievement to UAE sport, thus underlining the strength of the fast-growing sport domestically.
Female member Fatma Shahdoor expressed her happiness at winning bronze with her teammates and raising the UAE flag on the podium. She said: “The women’s team delivered strong performances and honourable displays throughout the matches as we competed for medals. We achieved that by finishing third and winning bronze. The best is yet to come at future events as we strive to win gold and have the UAE national anthem played before all participating delegations.”
An elated Al Awadhi affirmed that her double-gold achievement holds a special meaning for her as it was secured in the name of the UAE at an important Gulf sporting event.
She said: “Winning two gold medals means a great deal to me because I was not representing myself alone; I was proudly representing the UAE. Standing on the podium and seeing the UAE flag raised is an indescribable moment, and it makes me feel that all the effort, training and challenges we went through were worthwhile.”
Omar Al Ali affirmed that his achievement in archery was the result of the continued support of the wise leadership and various sports entities, expressing his pride in raising the UAE flag on the GCC podiums.
He said: “I dedicate this achievement to my beloved country and to everyone who supported me throughout my sporting journey. This achievement would not have been possible without the support of the wise leadership, the federation, the technical staff, the Amiri Guard Club, my teammates and my family, who have always been a source of support and motivation for me.”
