The Saudi weightlifting teams were crowned in first place in all the Arab weightlifting championships for juniors, youth and seniors, men and women, and in the Qatar Cup championship, which concluded yesterday in the Qatari capital amid the participation of more than 163 lifters representing 30 countries.
This great achievement, in which the male and female lifters of the Saudi Greens across all their categories swept all the first-place cups in the eight championships, came after their commanding lead and the distinctive points gap between them and the rest of the teams taking part; the remarkable brilliance, especially from the age categories among men and women, contributed significantly to claiming these titles.
In the Arab championship for juniors, youth and seniors and the Qatar Cup, the men’s weightlifting Greens’ share of medals was 68 gold, 19 silver and 7 bronze, while the tally of the Saudi girls’ and women’s weightlifting team — sitting atop the Arab throne across all its categories as well — came after winning 18 gold, 20 silver and 27 bronze medals, in a participation considered the largest and the first historically for Saudi women’s weightlifting and the most decorated since Saudi female lifters officially entered domestic and overseas competitions, confirming the ability and potential of Saudi women to compete and achieve accomplishments and first places in the name of the nation despite the recency of their entry into this sport’s arena and their surpassing of teams with a long history and standing in weightlifting.
Saudi lifter Abdullah Al-Muhaimid won the award for best youth athlete in the Arab championship and Qatar Cup, outperforming many lifters across all weight categories.
For his part, the president of the Saudi Weightlifting Federation board Mohammed Al-Harbi expressed his great delight at what was achieved in Doha, Qatar, with the Saudi teams claiming 8 Arab championships and the Qatar Cup, amid strong competition in which the Greens’ stars, male and female, displayed an outstanding level praised by all who followed the championship, attributing this excellence to the unlimited support that weightlifting in particular and sport in general receive from the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and his trustworthy Crown Prince — may God support them — and from the Minister of Sport and all officials of the Olympic and Paralympic Committee, which has contributed to the continued pre-eminence of Saudi weightlifting at all domestic levels
