SWIMMERS ADD RELAY BRONZE TO MEDAL TALLY
May 15, 2017
Jordan’s medal tally increased to five on Tuesday when a Khader Baqlah-inspired relay team took bronze in the 4x200 Freestyle at the 4th Islamic Games in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Baqlah, who already has two gold medals under his belt, was joined by Mohammad Bedour, Khaled Awadallah and Mohammad Jaber to finish third in a time of 7.54:42 minutes, behind Turkey who took gold.
Earlier in the day, Baqlah finished fifth in the 50m freestyle final. There was more good news for the swimmers with Lydia Musleh reaching tomorrow’s final of the 100m breaststroke.
BOXING SET FOR MEDALS
Meanwhile, Olympic boxer Hussein Ishaish showed why he is considered as one of the world’s top super heavyweight fighters by reaching the Baku semi-finals.
Ishaish beat Iran’s Reza Muradkhani in a bruising quarter-final and will meet local favourite Mahammadrasul Majidov on Wednesday for a place in the final.
His teammate Mohammad Al Wadi upset Kyrgyzstan’s Mribek Sherove in the 56kg weight and will meet Turkmenistan’s Yakub Meredov in Wednesday’s semi-final.
Obadah Al Kasbah hopes to make it three fighters in the semis when he fights Turkey’s Volkan Gokcek in the 64kg quarter-final on Tuesday.
TAEKWONDO AND SHOOTING LAUNCH CAMPAIGNS TUESDAY
Taekwondo and shooting begin their bids for honours on Tuesday.
Mohammad Abu Libdeh and Mohammad Al Bakheet have put their fighters through some tough final sessions with Taleen Al Humaidi (53kg), Juliana Al Sadeq (57kg), Mu’taism Abu Zaid (54kg) and Muath Al Qatawneh (58kg) all in action.
Shooter Ra’ed Al Qaisi will compete in the 10m Pistol with teammate Samera Al Bataineh shooting in the female category.
KARATE HEADS BACK HOME
Jordan’s karate team are on their way home with two medals to finish sixth in that sport’s standings.
Bashar Al Najjar (gold) in the 67kg and Hala Traish (bronze) in the 68kg category ensured they had reason to celebrate on the flight home.
“It was a great experience for our athletes,” said head coach, Ibrahim Abu Aledam.
“The level of competition was high so it was a great opportunity for us to take part, especially with the upcoming events like the Asian Karate Championships in July and World Championships in Spain in October just around the corner.”
JORDANIANS IN BAKU HOWING THEIR SUPPORT
There’s been plenty of support for Team Jordan in Baku from expatriates who call Azerbaijan home. “We are happy to support our country,” said Ahmad Obiedat, a medical student in Baku.
“It’s a great chance for us to be here to stand behind our athletes, and we were delighted to have been able to witness Khader (Baqlah) win 200m gold in the pool.
A real highlight for us.”
Fellow Jordan fan Musa’ab Al Dalki added: “We will keep cheering for our country until the end of the games.”
