Incheon: The UAE sailors feel that the “fruitful and enriching experience” of the Incheon Asian Games will stand them on a good stead for the future.
Hamad Ebrahim Al Hammadi, Mohammad Abdul Kareem Al Hammadi and Salama Adnan Al Mansouri formed a young three-member squad here.
The 17-year-old Hamad participated in the Men’s Laser class and was placed 10th out of the 12 sailors who participated, while 13-year-old Mohammad showed marked improvement through the 12 races he participate to be placed eighth overall from the 10 contesting in the Men’s Optimist class.
Fourteen-year-old Salama Al Mansouri, the only UAE girl sailor, also showed marked improvement over the week-long competition.
“Much more than the actual participation, it is the age of the sailors that gives us a great hope and confidence for the future,” Abdullah Al Obaidli, General Secretary, UAE Sailing and Rowing Association (UAE SRA), told Gulf News.
“We are trying to make a fresh start in sailing and these three sailors give us a lot of hope. They were brought here so that they could get the experience from participating in such a high-level competition with an eye on the future,” Al Obaidli said.
Sailing was postponed on Tuesday morning due to lack of winds, but eventually a single race was held later in the afternoon bringing down the curtains on the competition after 12 races in each of the disciplines. Al Mansouri finished in eighth place overall with 95 points in the women’s Optimist, while her teammate Mohammad also took eighth overall out of ten sailors with 92 points in the men’s Optimist class.
Hamad finished his 12 races with a total of 118 points, enough to give him the 10th spot out of 12 competitors. “At the end of the day it is the experience that counts for these sailors as they have age on their side. We are hopeful these sailors will stay with us and evolve to the bigger stage in due course of time,” Al Obaidli said.
