Mellouli received the awards after bagging 13 gold medals, a figure that could increase as he had still three more races to go.

“We are all honored by the achievements of this great Arab champion…," Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, chairman of the Arab Games Organizing Committee, was quoted as saying in a report posted on the Arab Games 2011 official website.

In an interview carried in the same report, Mellouli was asked about the key to his success. “I have no secrets – I just like the sport and I’m committed to it. It’s not just one or two months of training but years and years of sacrifices and training to make this happen,” he replied.

Mellouli's compatriots have also performed impressively to help place Tunisia on second place with a medal tally of 53 golds, 44 silvers and 38 bronzes, next to Egypt's 87 golds, 77 silvers and 67 bronzes — feats remarkable for two  countries that have just went through political upheavals early in the year.

The 12th Arab Games, with 18 countries participating, will conclude on Friday night with the football final match between Jordan and Bahrain followed by the closing ceremony at Al Sadd Sports Club.

Jordan qualified for the finals after eliminating Kuwait with a  2-0 win, while Bahrain vanquished Palestine 3-1 during their separate semifinals matches on Tuesday.

Completing the Top 5 in the medals standings were Morocco (35-23-53), followed by Qatar (34-33-40) and Algeria (15-30-40).

Saudi Arabia (15 gold, 11 silver and 17 bronze medals) dropped to 6th place after a gold-less day by its team in various events.