CAIRO, 18 November 2007 — Hard work and training enabled us to win gold medals, said winners Fahad Al-Junaidel and Ali Al-Beshi of Saudi Arabia at an award ceremony for athletes with special needs at the Olympic Center here yesterday.
Al-Junaidel was awarded twice —as champion of 400m and 200m in athletics event.
Al-Beshi was awarded gold in the javelin throw, as the three-day event for athletes with special needs concluded yesterday. A third Saudi, Saeed Al-Khalidi claimed silver in the 100m race.
The event was part of the ongoing 11th Pan Arab Games being held in Egypt.
Saudi Arabia also captured one silver medal and one bronze medal in the table tennis event that began yesterday. The weightlifting event will kick off on Tuesday.
“It was very hard to win against a tough Iraqi contingent, but we shrugged off all fears and made the country proud,” said the ecstatic winners, while expressing their happiness at their success.
“After days of hard work in the Kingdom and in Tunisia, we are mentally prepared,” said Al-Junaidel, adding, “It was the first time for him to undergo training abroad.” The win gave us a new perspective on the competition among other national teams, especially the advanced ones such as Tunisia and Morocco, he said.
“Despite the fact that we faced some difficulties due to the unorganized way of the competition, we are glad we achieved the goal and now we dream of participating at the 2008 Beijing Olympics,” said Al-Khalidi.
Nassir Al-Saleh, secretary-general of the Saudi Federation for Special Needs, was also present at the awarding ceremony. He told Arab News that the athletes had offered their best and made their country proud.
“Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and Prince Sultan ibn Fahd, president of the Saudi Youth Welfare, and his deputy Prince Nawaf ibn Faisal had been supporting the federation generously,” said Al-Saleh, adding that all of the three participating teams’ expenses were fully covered. Speaking about media coverage, Al-Saleh was very much impressed by the media, especially at the awarding ceremony. “The impressive coverage of the event means a lot to the athletes. It encourages them that their efforts are being recognized,” he said.
“Take, for example, what happened when the Saudi football team with special needs won the World Cup in Germany in 2006. People got to know them more and learn about them. They were supported generously, and to that extent some were finally able to get married and live in better homes. They all do not have high social status and earned this support fairly,” he said.
The athletes were hence awarded from Prince Nawaf ibn Faisal, deputy president of the Saudi Youth Welfare, along with the administrators and officials from the federation.
