Bahrain's delegation at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan took part yesterday in the event’s grand opening ceremony, held at the 30,000-capacity Paloma Mizuho Stadium.
Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) vice-president Shaikh Isa bin Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa was in attendance at the venue along with BOC secretary general Mustafa Al Kooheji, a number of BOC board members, and other officials from the kingdom’s squad.
Senior men’s basketball national team star Mustafa Hussain and dressage medal hopeful Aneesa Mahmood had the honour of leading the Bahrainis as flag-bearers in the parade of nations. They were joined by Bahrain’s administrative team officials along with athletes and officials from the kingdom’s cycling, handball, shooting, table tennis, and weightlifting national teams.
They were dressed in traditional Bahraini attire and carrying mini flags – a display that reflected the kingdom’s national identity.
Gracing yesterday’s inauguration were Japan’s Emperor Naruhito, who declared this year’s Asian Games officially open, and Empress Masako.
Also on hand were Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) president Sheikh Joann bin Hamad Al Thani of Qatar and International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry from Zimbabwe.
The OCA torch arrived at the stadium to mark the end of the Asiad torch relay, which began on August 22. It involved around 1,000 torchbearers who carried the flame, which was then used to light this year’s Asian Games cauldron.
Bahrain are amongst the 45 OCA member nations taking part in the quadrennial event, which features around 11,000 athletes, both men and women, competing in 43 sports.
The kingdom’s squad is composed of approximately 230 participants, according to the BOC, including athletes, coaches, administrators, media, and medical staff.
The sportsmen and women are headlined by reigning and former world, continental, Arab, and Gulf champions, who are looking to bring further Asiad glory to Bahrain in 20 sports.
These include athletics, badminton, five-on-five basketball, 3x3 basketball, boxing, cycling, equestrian (dressage), esports, handball, jiu-jitsu, judo, kurash, mixed martial arts (MMA), shooting, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, triathlon, weightlifting, and wrestling.
Bahrain’s athletes will be in action in six of the sports today.
The kingdom’s senior men’s handball national team get their campaign underway against Kazakhstan in Group B of their nine-nation tournament. The game is scheduled for 6.30am start, Bahrain time, at Toyoda Gosei Memorial Gymnasium in the city of Inazawa at Aichi Prefecture.
The Bahrainis and Kazakhs are both in the same pool as South Korea, Kuwait, and Iran, while Group A features hosts Japan, China, Hong Kong, and three-time defending champions Qatar.
The kingdom’s squad are repeat silver-medallists, having lost to the Qataris in the final of the previous two Asiad editions in Jakarta-Palembang, Indonesia in 2018 and in Hangzhou, China in 2022. The Bahrainis were also bronze-medallists in the 2014 tournament in Incheon, South Korea, but this time will be gunning for gold, especially after making history earlier this year by winning their first-ever title in the Asian Men’s Handball Championship, held in Kuwait City.
Meanwhile, two Bahrainis will be battling for a place on the podium today in their respective sports. They include Omar Hamza in the men’s triathlon individual final, scheduled for a 2.30am start, and Ahmed Naser in the men’s road cycling individual time trial (ITT), slated for 7.30am. Both times are Bahrain.
Hamza’s event at Gamagori City Triathlon Venue features 33 entries from 20 countries. They will be racing across a 750-metre swim, followed by a 20-kilometre bike ride, and ending with a 5km run.
Naser, on the other hand, will be amongst 18 riders from as many nations at Shinshiro Cycling Road Course. They will be going against the clock over a 32.1km course.
Also in action today are the kingdom’s athletes in MMA, swimming, and table tennis.
In MMA at Inae Sports Centre, Mohamed Alsameea will be competing in the men’s traditional MMA under-65kg preliminaries against Iran’s Afshin Salimi Toupghara, Mukhammad Nabiev will be in the men’s traditional MMA under-77kg preliminaries against Van Minh Quang of Vietnam, Diana Pogosian will be in the women’s modern MMA under-54kg quarter-finals against Tomoe Katayama of Japan, and Kurban Idrisov will contest the men’s modern MMA under-71kg against Kadyrbek Shinbayev of Kazakhstan in a quarter-final bout.
In swimming at Tokyo Aquatics Centre, Stepan Goncharov will be competing in both the men’s 100m freestyle heats and the men’s 100m backstroke heats. Abdulla Jamal will also be in the freestyle event and Ahmed Helal in the backstroke.
Sana Lefalher will be racing in the women’s 1,500m freestyle final B, Noor Taha will be hitting the water in the women’s 50m breaststroke heats, and a national team quartet will be competing in the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay.
In table tennis at Sky Hall Toyota, Bahrain will be going up against Chinese Taipei in Group C of the men’s teams’ preliminary round. The quartet of Mohamed Saleh, Mohammed Alaali, Rashed Sanad, and Sayed Mahfoodh will be in action for the kingdom.
Bahrain and Chinese Taipei are amongst 23 nations in the men’s teams’ competition. Nepal are also in their pool.
Group A is composed of China, Qatar, and Macau; Group B features Uzbekistan, the Maldives, and hosts Japan; Group D consists of South Korea, Mongolia, and Yemen; Group E is composed of Hong Kong, Thailand, and Kyrgyzstan; Group F includes India, Iran, Indonesia, and Pakistan; and Group G features Kazakhstan, Singapore, Bangladesh, and Laos.
Bahrain are taking part for the 14th time in the Asian Games, which is the world’s biggest multi-sport event outside of the Olympics. The kingdom first participated in 1974 and have been going for gold in each Asiad edition since.
Bahrain have won a total of 104 medals in past editions of the OCA spectacle, including 49 gold, 27 silver, and 28 bronze.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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