Arab Games Report - Bodybuilding Blow; Prize Money Precedent; Djibouti's Historic Gold

Body Blow for Bodybuilding

Ten of the 14 athletes to have failed doping tests at the ongoing Arab Games come from bodybuilding.

According to Doha 2011 organizers, all medal-winners whose A samples tested positive are likely to be stripped of their honors in the coming days.

That includes Qatari gold medalists Jalal Musaad Al Rayashi (85kg), Kamal Abdulsalam Abdulrahman (90kg), Wahid Mohammed Al Suwaidi (75kg) and Waleed Malallah Al Kubaisi (70kg).

The hosts will likely drop out of the top three in the medal tally as a result. Egypt sits comfortably at the top with almost twice as many as second-place Tunisia. Morocco has just as many total – and gold – medals as third-place Qatar but fewer silver and more bronze. Competition comes to a close Friday.

Abdullah Al Mullah, the organizing committee’s director of media and broadcasting, confirmed Tuesday that Doha 2011 is having doping issues and said the plan was to stage a press conference later with the Arab Games Medical Committee, who he said could provide further information.

Tests were conducted over the past two weeks on 402 athletes by the Medical Committee under the supervision of the World Anti-Doping Agency

Besides the body-builders, two judokas, a weightlifter and a basketball player round out the list of players whose cases will be forwarded to the concerned international federations for further measures .

Besides the Qatari athletes, three Egyptians, two Iraqi and two Jordanians tested positive. One athlete each from Bahrain, Morocco and United Arab Emirates also was reported for a banned substance.

Prize Money Precedent

Olympic medalist Nezha Bidouane of Morocco saysDoha 2011’s decision to award prize money to medal winners will have long-term repercussions for the Arab Games.

Nezha, who opened doors for Arabic women in sports throughout her hurdling career, said the move is good for athletes but may create complications for future hosts.

"I do not know if the cash awards will be carried forward to the next Arab Games," she said.

In 1997, Nezha became Morocco's first female world champion by winning the 400m hurdles. Her list of accomplishments includes world championship gold in 2001 as well as a bronze medal at Sydney 2000. She also won seven gold medals at the Arab Games from 1992 to 2004.

The prize money incentives, an Arab Games first, are being awarded to medal-winning athletes in Doha as well as to their National Olympic Committees. The best athlete of the Games and his or her NOC will also walk away with an additional $70,000 from the organizers.

The other incentives include $5,000 for gold, $3,000 for silver and $2,000 for bronze in individual events. For team sports, it’s $50,000 for gold, $30,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze. In each case, the winning NOC gets a matching amount.

Morocco, Qatar Rule Athletics

If there’s one image that will define athletics at these Arab Games, it’s the face of precocious Qatari star Mutaz Essa Barshim soon after he soared to gold in the men’s high jump.

Barshim had just flipped over the bar at 2.30m when he stood on the mat,nodding and smiling up to his family and friends while waving his arms like wings. "Yes, I can fly," seemed to be his message.

The 20-year-old submitted a memorable performance in an athletics program that saw the host country’s youthful squad rise beyond even their German coach Joachim Krug’s expectations.

With six gold medals, Qatar’s athletes easily surpassed Krug’s target of four and ended the five days of track and field in second place on the medal tally. Morocco topped the chart with 11, and Saudi Arabia rounded out the top three.

If Barshim provided the pinnacle for Qatar, 800m champ Musaab Abdelrahman Bala wasn’t far behind while Abubaker Ali Kamal’s wins in the steeplechase and 5000m made him one of just two athletes to win two individual golds at these Games.

But if Barshim and his teammates are the future of Arab athletics, Morocco remain thepresent kings.

With 24 medals overall, the North African nation eclipsed its own 2007 table-topping figures and also boasted the noisiest fans at showpiece Khalifa Stadium.

And there’s little doubt who was their biggest hero – diminutive powerhouse Malika Akkaoui, who stormed to victory in the women’s 400m as well as 800m and leaves Doha as the only athlete with three titles after helping Morocco’s women to 4x400m gold too.

Egypt’s medal haul, as usual, came largely from the field events with Egyptians finishing first and second in the women’s shot put and discus as well as men’s javelin.

Historic Gold for Djibouti

Also in athletics, Djibouti won its first gold medal at a major international competition courtesy of men’s 1500 champAyanleh Hassan. His winning time of 3 minutes, 34.32 seconds qualified him for the London 2012 Olympics.

"In Doha, we have witnessed Djibouti's first gold medal, with Hassan winning the 1500m final and qualifying for the London 2012 Olympics," Doha 2011’s Abdullah Al Mullah said Wednesday at a press conference.

"We are always seeking to support Arab countries in qualifying for the Olympic Games."

Al Mullah also congratulated another 23 Arab Games athletes who have qualified for next year’s Games and praised the 160-strong Palestinian delegation for its achievements at this year’s Games.

"As you know, Palestine is facing a difficult situation in Gaza and it is hard for Palestinian athletes to meet inside their country," he explained.

"The Games allowed them to gather and play at the athletes’ village. We congratulate Palestine for their achievements here at the Arab Games and we wish all luck to Palestine and to our Arabbrothers."

Mullah added that the star athlete of the Games would be announced at a pressconference Thursday afternoon. Criteria for the decision would include "results achieved during competition, as well as discipline and ethics," he said.

Written and reported in Doha by Armstrong Augusto Vaz.

20 Years at #1: