Bahrain’s best team yet heads to Paris Olympics

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

Report by Hussain Almaskati

Bahrain Olympic officials are confident they are sending their strongest team to the Paris 2024 Olympics, which began on Friday.

The National Olympic Committee Vice-President, Shaikh Issa bin Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, expressed high hopes for Bahrain’s 14 athletes competing in Paris, including eight runners, most of whom were born outside the country.

“This time we have a special group of athletes in Paris, the best ever to represent Bahrain,” he told Reuters. Bahrain has a solid history of Olympic success, primarily in athletics.

The Gulf nation’s four Olympic medals, including golds by Ethiopian-born Maryam Yusuf Jamal in 2012 and Kenyan-born Ruth Jebet in Rio 2016, highlight its strength on the track.

Winfred Yavi, also Kenyan-born, is a top contender in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase, having been crowned world champion in 2023.

Expanding Horizons Bahrain is also hopeful for its first medal outside track and field.

Russian-born Akhmed Tazhudinov, the reigning world champion in freestyle wrestling (97kg), is seen as a strong medal prospect.

“Tazhudinov has prepared well for the Olympics and hopes to add an Olympic medal to Bahrain’s haul,” said Abdulredha Abdulhussain Haji, President of the Bahrain Wrestling Federation.

With a successful Asian Games record and a blend of seasoned champions and promising newcomers, Bahrain is poised for a remarkable Olympic performance in Winfred Yavi Paris.