UAE dream of record medal haul at Asian Games

Yousif Mirza, the UAE and Asian Track and Road Cycling champion will look to make amends after twin misses. -KT file

As the Southeast Asian country of Indonesia prepares to host the Asian Games for a second time, the UAE go in with renewed hope that they can hold their own and punch above their weight against some of the heavyweights of Asia.
The usual suspects like China, Japan Korea and India, among the 45 nations, will be expecting to bag a truck load of medals from the 40 disciplines that will be at play but the UAE can dream of what could be a record medal haul from the 18th edition.
And that dream could yet turn into reality with the UAE clocking the air miles from West Asia to Southeast Asia with their largest ever contingent. A record 138 athletes will compete in 23 disciplines when the Games proper officially begins in the twin cities of Jakarta and Palembang.
And, by the time the Games reaches its fag end on September 2, the UAE will be hoping to make the trip back with metal of every hues and colours and ace Doha of 2006. That edition remains their most successful with the UAE clinching 10 medals - three gold, four silver and three bronze.
The UAE delegation will compete in football, basketball, shooting, equestrian, athletics, judo, jiu-jitsu, taekwondo, karate, wrestling, boxing, weightlifting, archery, fencing, cycling, golf, sail, kayaking, table tennis, rugby, jet ski, triathlon, and bowling.
The UAE have medals prospects in various disciplines, not least, jiu-jitsu, which is making its debut at the Games. Jiu-Jitsu is almost second nature to the Emiratis, who have shown a strong desire and dedication to the contact sport and have won plenty of medals at various international competitions.
Star fighter, the 30-year-old Faisal Al Ketbi will be leading the line for a sizeable UAE squad that also includes Hamad Nawad, Khalid Al Balushi, Omar Al Fadhli, Saeed Al Mazroui, Taleb Al Karbi, Hamid Al Kaabi, Mohammed Al Qubaisi, Saud Al Hammadi, Khalafan Belhol, Mohammad Haitham Radhi, Zayed Al Kaabi, Wadeema Al Yafei, Muhra Al Hanaei, Bashaaer Al Matroushi and Hissa Al Shamsi.
The UAE also look strong in judo with all eyes on Olympic champion Sergio Toma. Toma won bronze in the men's 81kg category at the Rio Olympics and much will be expected from the 31-year-old. The others in the team are Ivan Romarenko, Victor Sartov.
After near misses in Guangzhou, China in 2010 and Incheon, South Korea in 2014, Yousif Mirza, the UAE and Asian Track and Road Cycling champion will look to make amends and translate those twin fourth-place finishes to a podium. Mirza will have other emirati cyclists Ahmed Al Mansouri, Mohammed Al Mansouri, Saif Al Kaabi and Mohammed Al Balushi, by his side.
Athlete Alia Saeed Mohammed will be aiming for back-to-back gold medals after winning in the 10,000 metres in Incheon, last time out.
The UAE could also bag medals in equestrian with a team comprising of Sheikha Latifa Al Maktoum, Sheikh Majid Al Qasimi, Mohammed Shafi Al Rumaithi, Abdullah Mohammed Al Marri and Mohammed Ghanem Al Hajri.
Other medal prospects are karate, rowing, jet ski and football.
james@khaleejtimes.com