Qatar's Handball Stars Begin Quest for Gold Today
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OLYMPICS | Page 3 FFOOTBALL|OOTBALL Page 9 India down Foes reunited Ireland while as Mourinho, To Advertise here shooters Ranieri meet at Call: 444 11 300, 444 66 621 disappoint Wembley Sunday, August 7, 2016 Dhul-Qa’da 4, 1437 AH SPOTLIGHT Rio carnival TIMES opens with climate change message Page 2 PREVIEW Qatar’s handball stars begin quest for gold today By Our Correspondent Qatar’s Nada fails to qualify, beach volleyball team beaten Rio de Janeiro Qatar’s handball players at the Games Village yesterday. Qatar’s Nada Mohamed Arakji failed in the Heat 1 but she too failed to to get past the qualifying stage in the qualify for the semis, having finished he second day of competi- women’s 100m butterfly at the Rio 41st overall out of 45 swimmers. tion at the Rio 2016 Olympics Olympics yesterday. The world record holder Sarah Sjos- will see Team Qatar’s athletes The Qatari swimmer started in Heat trom of Sweden cruised through her compete across swimming, 1 but finished last among the five prelims, with the hot favourite claim- Thandball, boxing and beach volleyball. competitors with a time of 1:18.86 ing the fastest time in 56.26 seconds. For Qatar sports fans all eyes will be seconds. In beach volleyball the Qatar duo on young swimmer Noah al-Khulaifi Syrian swimmer Yusra Mardini, who of Jeff erson and Younousse were who will make his Olympic debut in is taking part in the Olympics under beaten 2-0 by the American pairing the 100m backstroke. The seventeen the Team Refugee banner, came first of Gibb and Patterson. year old and second youngest on the Qatar team already holds a massive fourteen GCC records and seeks to set myself grounded and set best times ball World Championships but the a further personal and national record and national records. I see this as a re- Olympics is another step up as Qatar’s in Rio. ally good stepping stone for the future team captain Abdulrazzaq Ahmed Mu- Speaking ahead of the biggest day of and future Olympics and Qatar swim- rad commented: “For Team Qatar this his career so far, up and coming swim- ming as a whole.” is everyone’s dream. Soon our dream ming talent al-Khulaifi said: “Up until After a hugely impressive second will become a reality. We dream of now I haven’t really grasped the mag- place fi nish in the World Handball winning a medal. But it will be a tough nitude of being in the Olympics but Championships hosted in Doha in challenge. After our performance in I’m trying not to let the pressure of the perstars I didn’t really expect to see just like ‘wow’. “In terms of what I want to achieve 2015, the Qatar handball team will en- the World Championships all nations occasion get to me. However it is very such legends all walking around like “It’s not something you see every for this Olympics I’m looking to devel- ter the games with great hopes, expec- are wary of us. They know we are a special to be here and part of this. normal people. From NBA stars who day so I’m not used to that side of op my own personal growth and expe- tations and local interest. force to be reckoned with but we’re “Being at the athletes village hasn’t seem about 7ft tall to Michael Phelps things but I’m concentrating hard and rience because I’m still only seventeen The team won the hearts of the na- prepared for that! We will do all we can blown my mind but it’s fi lled with su- who I saw in the pool, which for me is feel focused for my race. years old. Honestly I’m trying to keep tion in reaching the fi nal of the Hand- and leave the rest to God. SPOTLIGHT STAR OF THE DAY US teenager VIRGINIA THRASHER OF THE USA The star of the day is American teenager Virginia Thrasher, who won the first gold medal of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games yesterday, holding her nerve against two Chinese Ol- ympic champions to clinch the women’s 10m air rifle event. Competing in her first Olympics, Thrasher, as the first champion of the 2016 Games, was awarded her medal by claims fi rst International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach and said the achievement was beyond her wildest dreams. The youngest of the eight finalists by several years, Thrash- er established an early lead after battling with the Russian shooter Daria Vdovina, who stumbled midway through the competition and finished fifth. “About halfway through when I took the lead it kind of gold in Rio became clear to me that I was in contention for a medal, but I quickly pushed that thought away and focused on breath- ‘It’s very special for me to start out in Rio 2016 for the US’ ing and taking one shot at a time,” Thrasher said. AFP Rio de Janeiro Virginia Thrasher of USA reacts after winning the gold in the S teenager Virginia Thrash- women’s 10m air rifle event. er got hooked on shooting when deer hunting with her grandfather and yesterday Uthat passion saw her past China’s champion sharpshooters to claim the fi rst gold medal of the Rio 2016 Games. The 19-year-old edged past Athens 2004 champion Du Li in the fi nal shot in the women’s 10m air rifl e. London 2012 titleholder Yi Siling took bronze. “It’s been a whirlwind of a summer. I have been travelling internationally the entire summer, and this is just the icing on the cake,” said the West Vir- ginia University student. Thrasher accumulated 208 points, one clear of Du, with Yi on 185.4. Russian contingent competing in Rio this one might be my last one,” the Olympic chief Thomas Bach was in the shadow of the massive doping 37-year-old said. on hand to do the honours at the 2016 scandal that has dogged the Games Dethroned champion Yi meanwhile Games’ fi rst podium presentation. build-up. was refl ective. “This is beyond my wildest Encouraged by vociferous support- “Everyone wants to win the fi rst dreams,” she added. ers she eventually slipped off the pace gold medal of the Rio Games. I think “It’s very special for me to start out to fi nish fi fth. I’ve done a good job, I won the fi rst ti- in Rio 2016 for the United States.” Yi was bang in contention to suc- tle in London and was only a little bit Recounting the story of how she cessfully defend her crown but sharp behind here, I did my utmost.” took up the sport in the fi rst place she shooting saw Thrasher and Du go Meanwhile, Paula Pareta won the recalled: “It was 8th grade, my grand- head to head, with the young Ameri- fi rst judo gold medal of the Rio 2016 father took me hunting, I got my fi rst can, displaying maturity beyond her Olympics for Argentina beating South deer, I really liked the adrenalin.” years, edging it on the fi nal shot. Korea’s Bokyeong Jeong in the fi nal of Shooting was the fi rst of 12 gold “I knew if I made the fi nal anything the women’s 48kg category. medals in play on a crammed opening could happen,” said the happy winner. Japan’s Ami Kondo and Otgontset- day of competition. There are more “I focused on breathing, I was here seg Galbadrakh of Kazakhstan took than 300 titles on off er over the next to give it my best shot. bronze as home favourite and defend- fortnight at the 2016 Olympics. “Halfway through when I took the ing champion Sarah Menezes crashed Thrasher claimed gold just 11 lead it was clear to me I had a chance, I out in the quarter-fi nals. hours after Brazilian marathon run- was taking one shot at a time.” In other action, South Korea’s arch- ner Vanderlei Cordeiro lit the Olym- While the winner can look forward ers routed the United States to win the pic cauldron at the climax of Friday’s to many more Games, Rio may have men’s team gold at the Rio Olympics spectacular opening ceremony. been Du’s last appearance at an Ol- yesterday and restore a dynasty bro- An absorbing competition was led ympics. ken by the Americans at London four briefl y by Daria Vdovina, one of the “I’ve competed in four Games, years ago. Gulf Times 2 Sunday, August 7, 2016 OLYMPICS OPENING CEREMONY Rio carnival opens with a mix of pared patriotism & message of climate change Brazil unfurls a vast canvas celebrating its rainforest and the creative energy of its wildly diverse population in welcoming the world to the Olympic Games, all to the pounding beat of samba, bossa nova and funk The Guardian piness Rap by funk singer Ludmilla — “I Rio de Janeiro just want to be happy in the favela where I was born” — had more than a tinge of irony given complaints about forced re- ith some help from su- locations and police violence linked to permodel Gisele Bund- Brazil’s run of major sporting events. chen, a team of refugees, That segued into a section on the Wthousands of saplings, perils of global warming. Meirelles had 12-year-old rapper MC Soffi a and an been particularly keen to highlight the injection of patriotism, organisers hope environmental challenge facing Brazil Rio 2016’s pared-down opening cer- and the world.