JEDDAH, 16 December 2005 — After remaining on top of the Saudi league since round two, Al-Shabab gained the top position with 23 points after defeating Al-Nasr 3-1. Hilal dropped to second place with 22 points. Ahli is on third with 17 points after beating Al-Ansar 3-1 in Madinah. This win was tonic for Ahli after their embarrassing 2-2 draw against 11th-ranked Abha, which has 4 points, earlier in the week. Al-Qadisiya advanced to the fourth position with 15 points after defeating Al-Ansar 2-0 and a 2-2 draw against Al-Taie yesterday. Al-Wehda dropped to fifth position with 11 points after a surprising 1-0 loss against Al-Hazem. Al-Hazem, showing excellent performance, has managed to jump from the last position to eighth after winning two games and drawing two games in the last four. They now have ten points. Abha and Al-Ansar remain in the last two positions. Al-Ittihad will be back in action after finishing participation in the FIFA Cup World Championship in Japan. The gap between the second- and third-placed teams is increasing, and the battle for first place is limited to Shabab and Hilal.
Volleyball:
Ahli defeated major rival Hilal 3-2 last Friday to take the lead. Hilal currently is on top of the league after defeating Al-Yarmouk 3-0 with 20 points from 11 matches. Ahli is currently temporarily in second place with 20 points from 10 matches. Ahli could go to the top again after the match against Al-Khuwaildeya today. Ahli and Hilal are expected to meet in the finals.
Ittihad Performance:
People commended Ittihad’s performance in the FIFA Cup World Championship against Al-Ahly of Egypt and Sao Paulo of Brazil. Ittihad stunned the world with the fine performance against Ahly, while snapping the latter’s 55-game undefeated run with a 1-0 win. Everyone thought that Ittihad was going to be an easy prey for the Brazilian team in the semifinals, but, despite the loss, Ittihad showed great heart in giving the Brazilian team a tough time before losing 2-3. Their gritty performances sent a message to the world about the Saudi skills. Ittihad gained the respect of many critics by playing hard, fast, and close till the last minute despite facing big names in FIFA club football.
Equestrian Event:
Buraidah hosted the fifth equestrian tournament for the General Administration for Water on Wednesday. The event featured four races, the first being for novices over 1,200-meters. The second race over 1,600 meters was for fillies. The third race, over 2,000 meters, was for two-year-olds. The final 1,200-meter race was open.
Dakharu Wins:
Dakharu from the Khalidiya Stable was awarded first position at the Arabian Stallions World Cup in Paris on Sunday. More than 19 countries participated at the event. Nine horses belonging to Prince Khalid ibn Sultan represented the Kingdom. Among them was Found Obsession, which won the 2005 Stallions World Cup. The Khalidiya Stable has managed to gain more than 21 awards so far this year.
