Paris (AFP)
Bahraini runner Winfred Yaffe won the second gold medal for the Arabs at the Paris Olympics, after winning the 3,000m steeplechase race. Algerian Kaylia Nemour had snatched the first gold medal for the Arabs in the uneven bars competition in gymnastics. The Arabs also won a silver medal for Tunisian fencer Fares Ferjani and a bronze medal for Egyptian fencer Mohamed El Sayed.
Yafi, 24, added an Olympic gold to her world title won in Budapest in 2023. The runner completed the race in 8:52.76 minutes, breaking the Olympic record that had been held by Russian Gulnara Samitova-Galkina (8:58.81 minutes) since the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Yafi won the race in the final metres thanks to her finishing speed ahead of the Tokyo champion three years ago, Ugandan Biruth Shimutai. “This is like a dream come true. It’s special. It means a lot to me and to the country as well. I executed the race plan that I had. I’m happy that the plan worked,” Yafi said.
It is the third gold medal for Bahrain in the history of its participation in the Olympic Games and the second in the 3,000m steeplechase race after Ruth Jebet in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, after Maryam Jamal opened the gold record for the Gulf state in the Olympics in London 2012 when she won first place in the 1,500m race.
#Speed #wins #gold #3000m #steeplechase #race #Bahrain