Bahrain’s Karima Salah Jassem leads the Arab Champs women's 10,000m in Tunis (© Slim Gomri)
Sun and rain were also competing with the athletes on the third day (Sat 17) of the Arab Championships in variable weather conditions at the Rades Stadium.
Despite the rain, Bahrain’s Karima Salah Jassem, who had already taken bronze over 5000m at these championships on Friday, won the women’s 10,000m in a Championship record with 34:45.47. Her more favoured compatriot Nadia Ejjafini, 24, who has been a participant in the last two World Championship marathons and has a 5000m PB of 15:41.45 from when coming third in the 1998 World Junior Championships, dropped out with 4 laps to go to the finish.
Sudan’s Mashair Ali was the long time leader and was followed for much of the race by Tunisia’s 21-year-old Habiba Ghribi, who had already finished 4th here in the 5000m, and the eventual winner Jassem. These positions were held until the last 2 laps when Mashair Ali began to look tired, and her challengers caught and passed her. But in a sustained drive to the finish, Jassem was much the stronger with Habiba Ghribi finishing well back in second (35:03.83).
Mona Jabir Ahmed from Sudan, who won the women’s Heptathlon on Friday, also closed out the 400m Hurdles with a 57.88 second run for gold.
Saudi Arabian athletes underlined their strength in the competition when winning gold in the men’s 4 x 100m relay, silver and bronze in the men’s Triple Jump, bronze in the men’s 400m Hurdles.
Tunisia’s Balti Cyrine won gold with a 3.80m effort in the women’s Pole Vault. In the Men's Triple Jump, Brahim Babaker Mohamed from Qatar won the competition with a leap of 16.49m.
Kuwait also took the gold medal in the men’s Hammer Throw through Ali Mohamed Al Zankawi (76.10).
Tunisia is still in the pole position on the medal table with twenty eight medals (nine gold). However, Sudan dislodged Bahrain from the second position with 11 medals (10 for Bahrain). Qatar, Algeria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Syria and Oman follow in that order.
Slim Gomri for the IAAF
SELECTED RESULTS
MEN
400m Hurdles
1 Tabel Kamel TUN 50.84
2 titi laroussi TUN 51.21
3 Bandar yahia chrahili KSA 52.12
3000m Steeplechase
1 Tareq Mubarak Taher BRN 8.40.16
2 Mustapha Ahmed Chbitou QAT 8.41.54
3 Merzak Ould Bouchiba ALG 8.47.78
High Jump
1 Amri Boualem ALG 1.96 767 pts
Triple Jump Men
1 Brahim Babaker Mohamed QAT 16.59
2 Salem Msaad El Ahmadi KSA 16.28
3 Mohamed Majrachi Abdou KSA 16.27
Hammer Throw
1 Ali Mohamed Al Zankawi KUW 76.10
2 Souid Saber TUN 71.01
4x100m
1 KSA 39.88
2 QAT 40.13
3 OMA 40.60
WOMEN
10,000m
1 Karima Salah Jassem BRN 34.45.47 Rec Champ
2 Habiba Ghribi TUN 35.03.83
3 Mashair Ali SUD 35.11.18
400m Hurdles
1 Mouna Jaber SUD 57.88
2 Nawel El-Jack SUD 58.92
3 Houria Moussa ALG 1.00.93
Pole Vault
1 Balti Syrine TUN 3.80
Javelin
1 Hana Ramadhane Omar EGY 52.00
4X100m
1 TUN 47.36
2 SYR 48.35
