President of the Olympic Council of Asia and Qatar Olympic Committee H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al-Thani, also the Chairman of the Organising Committee of the GCC Games Doha 2026 crowned the winners of 4x200m freestyle relay.
Doha, Qatar: Qatar’s track and field athletes struck five gold medals as swimmers maintained their strong momentum, with the hosts strengthening their grip on top spot on an action-packed day at the GCC Games Doha 2026 yesterday.
Olympic champion Mutaz Barshim marked his return to competition by sharing the gold medal with Oman’s Fatak Bait Jaboob, in a repeat of his famous joint victory with Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi at the Tokyo Olympics.
Qatar added 10 more gold medals to their tally, taking their overall haul to 54 medals, including 21 gold, 19 silver and 14 bronze after the conclusion of the third day of action. Saudi Arabia sit second with 14 gold, 11 silver and 12 bronze, while Bahrain are third with eight gold, 10 silver and five bronze.
Both Barshim and Jaboob shared the men’s high jump gold medal after clearing 2.16m. Barshim opted to share the gold with the Omani athlete after the judges asked whether he wished to continue jumping.
The gold marked Barshim’s fourth medal in Gulf Games history, adding to the titles he won in the first, third and fourth editions, along with a bronze medal from the second edition. Saudi Arabia’s Ahmed Al-Tarouti settled for bronze.
Read more: Barshim family moment adds emotional spark to Qatar’s golden night at Games
“Praise be to Allah. This is my first championship of the season after an absence of almost two years since the Paris Olympics. Last year I was unable to participate due to a serious injury, and today I was able to return, participate, and win gold,” said Barshim, after returning to action.
It was a proud moment for Jaboob.
“It’s a wonderful feeling competing with the legend Mutaz Barshim. Sharing the gold with a champion of his calibre is a great honour for me,” he said.
Qatar continued to dominate the athletics programme, sweeping the top two spots in the men’s 5,000m race walk through Mabrouk Jahzah and Essa Barshim. Jahzah clinched gold after crossing the line in 24:21.75, while Barshim secured silver in 32:27.68, with the UAE’s Ayoub Sarwash taking bronze.
The hosts added another gold in the men’s 3,000m steeplechase as Zakaria Ibrahim stormed to victory in 8:35.13. Fellow Qatari Yasser Salem Bughrab ensured a one-two finish by taking silver in 9:08.58.
Seifeldin Abdelsalam further boosted Qatar’s tally by winning the men’s pole vault crown, finishing ahead of Saudi Arabia’s Hussein Al-Hizam and Mohammed Al-Qudaihi.
In the women’s events, Sara Ali claimed gold in the 100m hurdles with a winning time of 13.87secs, while teammate Shahd Mohammed picked up bronze. The UAE’s AlJazi Farhan settled for silver.
Qatar also secured medals in several other events, with Hatem Aitoulghazi taking silver and Mubarik Said bronze in the men’s 800m, won by the UAE’s Ibrahim Al-Dhafeeri. Hamza Al-Suwaissi added a silver in the men’s shot put behind Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Tolu.
Meryem Salek claimed bronze in the women’s 800m, while Dana Salem and Salma Hamed also finished third in the women’s 100m sprint and long jump respectively.
The athletics action resumes today with finals scheduled in a number of events, including the men’s and women’s 400m, men’s 110m hurdles, javelin throw, long jump and the 4x400m relays.
More gold medals for swimmers
At the Hamad Aquatic Centre, Mohamed Mahmoud continued his impressive run, claiming another gold medal after winning the men’s 100m breaststroke final in 1:03.10. He finished ahead of Bahrain’s Saud Ghali (1:05.17), while Saudi Arabia’s Emad Alsibyani (1:05.37) took bronze.
Saadeddin secured his third gold medal of Doha 2026, winning the men’s 200m freestyle in a Games record time of 1:49.59. Ali Tamer Hassan completed a Qatari one-two by taking silver in 1:50.38, while Kuwait’s Saud Alshamroukh settled for bronze after clocking 1:54.56.
The hosts also struck gold in the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay, setting another Games record with a time of 7:29.22. Kuwait (7:45.38) and Bahrain (7:49.07) finished second and third respectively. Team Qatar were represented by Hassan, Mahmoud, Saadaldin and Emile Fouzai.
President of the Olympic Council of Asia and Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al-Thani, also the Chairman of the Organising Committee of the GCC Games Doha 2026 crowned the winners of 4x200m freestyle relay.
Qatar swimmers added two more silver medals yesterday, with Fouzai finishing runner-up in the men’s 400m individual medley in 4:32.69. Bahrain’s Robert Bonsall claimed gold in a Games record time of 4:27.71, while Kuwait’s Khaled Alotaibi (4:37.56) secured bronze.
Tameem Elhamayda earned the other silver after finishing second in the men’s 50m butterfly in 24.58. Bahrain’s Mikhail Arkhangelskiy won gold in 23.80, while Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Alotaibi (24.80) took bronze.
Qatar’s Ali Al-Obaidli and Abdullatif Alfawal clinched the men’s 10-ball doubles gold with a dominant 7-1 win over Kuwait in the final.
Qatar claim 10-ball doubles, bowling golds
Qatar cueists comprising Ali Al-Obaidli and Abdullatif Alfawal displayed a dominant performance to clinch the men’s 10-ball doubles gold defeating Kuwait’s Sulaiman Gholoum and Meshari Bohaimed 7-1 in the final. Qatar had earlier defeated Saudi Arabia 7-4 in the semi-final while Kuwait edged the UAE 7-6 to book their spot in the final.
Qatar’s Talal Al-Marri, Bader Al-Sada and Jassim Al-Muarikhi won the men’s trio bowling gold with a combined score of 3,785 pins.
At the Qatar Bowling Centre, Qatar’s bowling team claimed the gold medal in the men’s trio event. The home team of Talal Al-Marri, Bader Al-Sada and Jassim Al-Muarikhi topped the standings with a combined score of 3,785 pins over six games, overcoming strong competition from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE and Oman. Saudi Arabia’s team of Bandar Al-Yaba, Ziyad Al-Tuwaireb and Ahmed Abu Al-Reesh took silver with 3,655 pins, while Kuwait’s Aseel Al-Roumi, Faisal Saleem and Mustafa Al-Mousawi secured bronze with 3,633 pins.
Meanwhile, Qatar also secured two silver medals in boxing events with Mohamed Alfagay falling to Saudi Arabia’s Muhannad Majrashi 1-4 in the men’s 55kg final. Another home boxer Mohammed Dbichi reached the final of men’s 75kg where he suffered defeat against Bahrain’s Aly Abdalla.
Qatar’s handball team opened their Games campaign on a positive note, defeating the UAE 28-20 at the Al Duhail Sports Hall yesterday. The side will be back in action tomorrow, facing Kuwait in their second match of the tournament.
