https://arab.news/nu9wt
- Emirati female and male athletes topped championship table with 18 medals
ABU DHABI: The UAE national team has dominated the 5th Jiu-Jitsu Asian Championships in Abu Dhabi to finish top of the medal table.
The UAE national team, which included several international debutantes, had undergone an intensive training programme in the lead-up to the championship. This included a strong performance from the men’s team at the Miami Grand Slam back in July, where they captured 13 medals.
“The UAE national team is the winner, and we are proud of what the sport of jiu-jitsu has reached in the UAE,” Theyab Al-Nuaimi, who captured gold for the UAE, said. “The qualifying matches were difficult, especially as they included varying weights and physical differences between the players, but I was able to use my skills to bypass them and take the gold medal.”
The Jiu-Jitsu Asian Championship attracted the continent’s best athletes at Abu Dhabi’s Jiu-Jitsu Arena and the UAE reveled on their home mats. They finished first in the overall medal table with 18 medals — four gold, four silver and 10 bronze — ahead of Kazakhstan, who finished second with two gold, three silver and three bronze.
“The UAE is at the forefront of Asian countries in leading the recovery of sports from the pandemic, and holding the fifth Jiu-Jitsu Asian Championship is a true testament of Abu Dhabi’s readiness to host world-class events,” Mohammed Salem Al-Dhaheri, Vice President of the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation (UAEJJF), said. “Welcoming the championships also confirmed Abu Dhabi’s stature as the global capital of jiu-jitsu.”
This championship will also have helped the national team players to prepare for the upcoming World Jiu-Jitsu Championship, from Oct. 28 to Nov.7, and the 13th Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
UAE jiu-jitsu national team head coach Ramon Lemos praised his team's performance, saying: “We have chosen some new names to participate in this championship and we are confident that these talents will be the mainstay of the team in the coming years.
“The female players performed outstandingly, despite their bouts with more experienced players. They were brilliant on the mat, and they have a promising future in the sport.”
One of those athletes was Shamsa Al-Ketbi, who took the bronze medal in the women’s under-70kg category.
“I aimed at the gold, but the difference in experience between me and the players I faced was enormous,” she said. “However, it’s all a learning curve and simply participating in the continental championship is a gain.”