DUBAI // Siham Al Rashidi, a member of the UAE team at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games, has set her sights on achieving a new Asian mark next week when 386 athletes from 41 countries arrive here for the ninth running of the Fazza Championships for the Disabled from March 20-23.
Holder of the Asian discuss throw mark at 25.68 metres, Al Rashidi, who claimed sixth in Rio and will compete in the F57 classification, could barely conceal her joy when she talked about competing in the Fazza Championships for the first time, at her home ground, the Dubai Club for the Disabled.
“I want to set a new record here in the Fazza Championships and hopefully, that will be a spur to finish in the top three in London [July’s 2017 World ParaAthletics Championships],” said Al Rashidi, one of the top medal hopes in the 24-member UAE contingent.
“I am really excited because this is the first time I will be taking part in this competition, but this week will not be just about sports or competing for me.
“I am really looking forward to showing the visiting athletes around the city, showing them our culture, traditions, clothes and food. I know most of them from Rio and I want to show them everything about the UAE.”
Winner of the discus gold medal at last month’s West Asian Games and a bronze in the shot put, Abbad Khalid, 23, is also one of UAE’s medal hopes.
And Fatima Toumi, Al Rashidi and Khalid’s Tunisian coach at the Dubai Club for the Disabled, believes success in the Fazza Champiosnhips will be a great way to kick-start preparations for the London World ParaAthletics Championships
“We are preparing for London now and we have big plans for the coming months — lots of overseas camps and we will participate in the Tunisian Open meet, then Berlin in June,” she said. “There are big things to come, I can promise you that.
“Our club, the Dubai Club for the Disabled, is giving us all the support we need. They have spent a lot of money and time for us. They trust us and we trust them, and our big target is the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo.”
One of the six stops on the World Para Athletics Grand Prix calendar, the Fazza Championships will be held at the Dubai Club for the Disabled’s brand new 1,300-seater stadium, and there will be competitions in 36-38 categories on each of the four days.
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