World championships in Kazan provide priceless experience for the UAE team

Yaqoub Al Saadi and his United Arab Emirates teammates have looked at the Kazan event as a learning experience. Adam Pretty / Getty Images

When Yacoub Al Saadi touches the wall at the end of the 50-metre backstroke on Saturday he will bring the UAE’s participation at the world swimming championships in Kazan to a close.

The results in Russia have been disappointing for the UAE contingent, none of whom progressed from the heat stages. But for Al Saadi, 19, the experience has been well worth the journey.

“This is my second time at the world championships; I also swam at Barcelona 2013,” he said.

“The championships in Kazan has been a really good competition and the organisation has been very good. The pool is amazing and we’ve watched a lot of world records take place.

“For myself, it’s good for me to swim in this atmosphere and I hope in the near future we will do something good for our country in this class of events.”

On Monday, Al Saadi took part in the 100m backstroke heats but his time of one minute, 1.04 seconds was three seconds slower than his best, leaving him last in his field.

The Al Ain Club swimmer is hoping the disappointment will drive him on in future events and said racing at this level will help him pick up medals in regional competitions such as the GCC championships next month.

“We were swimming around four or five kilometres every day. The world championships in Kazan plus the swimming world cup events in Moscow and Paris are steps on our preparation plan,” said Al Saadi, who has been a part of a five-member UAE squad, that also included Nada Al Bedwawi, Alia Al Shamsi, Mubarak Al Besher and Abdullah Hatem.

Al Besher, 27, has been a fatherly influence on the team.

“Of course, Mubarak is a real captain. He has a lot of experience and he has helped us a lot,” Al Saadi said. “Also we have with us [coaches] Mohammed Al Ghafri, Mohammed Jasim and Ali Saaed. We are together as one team and one family.”

Al Besher echoed that and said he welcomed the role of mentoring Al Saadi and the others.

“Our responsibility is to inspire the young swimmers in UAE and motivate them to do something good for our country,” he said. “We have spent more time together, especially on our long travels. Sure, I speak with all the team and we share a lot of ideas together.”

Having Al Saadi’s final race on Saturday, four days after the last Emirati involvement, has meant the team could take in even more of the experience and city.

“Kazan is an amazing city,” Al Saadi said. “The Olympic city where we have been staying is an amazing place, very well organised. All the sports facilities are great.”

The 50m backstroke is a chance for the Emirati swimmer to do something neither he nor his teammates have done — progress to the semi-finals.

For once, Al Saadi, racing in Lane 4 of Heat 2, has the best competition qualifying time in his heat. In light of earlier races, though, he assumes nothing.

“I will try to improve my personal record and do a good event,” he said.

The rest of the summer promises to be hectic for Al Saadi, but he already has one eye on next year’s Olympic Games at Rio de Janeiro. “The Olympics are a big dream for any sportsman around the world and, of course, it’s my dream also,” he said of Rio 2016. “I will work hard during the next few months.

“I want to be one of the best Arab swimmers during the next year, and also I want to reach good positions in the Asian events.

“I want to achieve something good for my country.”

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