Just a handful of days remain in the Tokyo Olympics. But interest remains high for Mena athletes.
Below are the athletes from the region who will be in action on Wednesday.
Athletics
Olympic Stadium
Five finals today to look forward to in the Olympic Stadium. Starting with the women’s 400m hurdles at the end of the morning session. Then in the evening, there are medals to be won in the women’s 3000m steeplechase, and the men’s hammer throw, 800m and 200m.
A big name to look out for in the women’s steeplechase final is Winfred Mutile Yavi who will be looking to keep the title in Bahrain after Ruth Jebet’s heroics in 2016.
Ranked fifth in the world, Yavi has the season’s second best time in the starting lineup. She has had a great season, winning two bronze medals in the Diamond League this year. We should expect to see her challenging Hyvin Kiyeng and Beatrice Chepkoech who will be looking to bring home a long awaited first gold for Kenya in the event.
Beach Volleyball
Shiokaze Park
Qatar’s Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan have progressed through to the last of the men’s quarter-finals of the day, against Paolo Nicolai and Daniele Lupo of Italy.
Canoe
Sea Forest Waterway
It’s an action packed day at the Sea Forest Waterway. We will be watching Momen Mahran of Egypt who will be in the second heat of the men’s kayak single 200m.
Also representing Egypt will be Samaa Ahmed, as she and Amira Kheris of Algeria will be looking for a place in the semi-finals of the women’s kayak single 500m competition.
Diving
Tokyo Aquatics Centre
Maha Gouda returns to the Olympics for her second outing. The Alexandrian-born representing Egypt will be diving from the highboard in the women’s 10m platform preliminaries.
Golf
Kasumigaseki Golf Club
The women’s competition will be teeing off today. Look out for Morocco's Maha Haddioui, the only representative from Mena and the whole of Africa.
Marathon Swimming
Odaiba Marine Park
2018 African Championships gold medalist Souad Cherouati from Algeria will be the one to watch from the region at the Odaiba Marine Park.
Sailing
Enoshina
Noya Bar Am and Shahar Tibi of Israel will be racing for a medal in the women’s two person Dinghy.
Weightlifting
Tokyo International Forum
Some incredible talent on show in the heaviest of the men’s weight categories (+109kg). Look out for a possible showdown between junior world record holder Ali Davoudi of Iran and Syrian Man Asaad who are likely to be battling for a silver medal spot. It’s likely that senior world record holder, and Rio 2016 gold medalist, Lasha Talakhadze from Georgia will retain his title, but anything could happen.
Algerian Walid Bidani aims for a podium spot too.
Wrestling - various
Mukahari Messe
It’s all Algeria and Iran among Mena wrestlers today.
In the men’s freestyle 57kg last 16, we will be following Algeria’s Abdelhak Kherbache as he takes on Georgi Vangelov from Bulgaria, while Reza Atrinagharchi of Iran will grapple with Turkey’s Suleyman Atli.
Another Iranian, Hassan Yazdanicharati will be taking on Javrail Shapiev of Uzbekistan, and Fateh Benferfjallah from Algeria will be up against Swiss Stefan Reichmuth in the 86kg competition.
