The players of the Saudi athletics team continued their presence on the podiums in the Fifth Asian Paralympic Games “Nagoya 2026”, after Badr bin Ali snatched the gold medal in the shot put competition, achieving a new Asian record, while his colleague Nour Al-Sanaa won the silver medal in the 400 meters race, adding two new achievements to the Saudi participation in the tournament.
Badr bin Ali succeeded in topping the podium in first place in the shot put competitions in the “F20” category, after recording a distance of 17.08 metres, breaking the Asian record, to combine the gold medal with the digital achievement in the same competition.
The Saudi achievement in athletics competitions came after Ben Ali outperformed his competitors and took the top spot in the standings, confirming his presence in one of the most prominent track and field competitions, and awarding the Saudi team a gold medal with additional value by setting a new continental record.
In the track competitions, Nour Al-Sanaa added the silver medal to the Saudi team’s tally, after finishing second in the 400-meter race in the “T64” category, recording a time of 53.13 seconds.
The makers were able to finish the race in second place, climbing to the podium and winning a new Asian silver in the athletics competitions.
The coronation ceremony witnessed the Saudi players ascending to the gold and silver podiums, in attendance that reflects the results of the Saudi team in the field and track competitions within the continental tournament.
Badr bin Ali's gold medal is of special importance. Because it was coupled with breaking the Asian record in the shot put, while Nour Al Sanaa’s silver strengthened the Saudi presence in track races, the two players concluded their participation with two outstanding results in the “Nagoya 2026” tournament.
Indian Sandeep excelled in the 400-meter race by clocking 52.28 seconds, setting a world record, 0.85 seconds ahead of Al-Sanaa, while Indian Ajay Kumar came third with a time of 53.61 seconds, completing the ranking of the three medalists.
The two medals come as an extension of Saudi Arabia’s results in the tournament hosted by Japan until October 24, after the previous days’ competitions witnessed the crowning of Ali Al-Nakhli with the gold in the 100-meter race in the T37 category, and Thamer Al-Zahrani with the gold in the 400-meter race in the same category.
Al-Taawoun Club announced, on Thursday, the appointment of Hamed Al-Balawi as the club’s executive director, in an administrative step that comes amid difficult circumstances experienced by the first football team, which occupies seventeenth place, penultimate, in the Saudi Professional League standings.
On Wednesday, Al-Sharq Al-Awsat alone reported that Al-Balawi was close to assuming the position, before the club officially announced his appointment on Thursday.
Al-Balawi is considered one of the most qualified Saudi sports administrators, as he previously worked as an executive director at Al-Ittihad and Al-Koloud clubs, which gives him previous knowledge of the club’s environment and the nature of administrative work there.
Al-Taawoun is experiencing a faltering start in the Saudi League, after it was satisfied with collecting four points from ten matches, without achieving any victory, compared to four draws and six defeats, and its players scored four goals, while the team conceded 17 goals.
The team's offensive and defensive record reflects the magnitude of the challenges awaiting the new administration, especially since Al-Taawoun is the only team besides Abha that has not achieved any victory so far, according to the ranking table.
Al-Taawoun will play its first match after Al-Balawi’s appointment against Riyadh, on Saturday, in the Saudi Professional League, in a confrontation that the new executive director will attend, amid aspirations that it will constitute the beginning of a different phase for the team, which seeks to leave the relegation centers and improve its results during the coming rounds.
This step comes at a time when Al-Taawoun continues to compete on more than one front, with its participation in the second AFC Champions League, in addition to reaching the round of 16 of the King’s Cup, which increases the importance of rearranging the team’s administrative files during the next stage.
On Friday, all eyes will turn towards Prince Mohammed bin Fahd Stadium in Dammam, where the anticipated summit will be held between Al-Qadisiyah, the leader, and its guest, Al-Hilal, the runner-up, in a confrontation that exceeds 3 points, to constitute a real test of the ambitions of the two teams in competing for the Saudi Professional League title.
The confrontation, which will be held within the 11th round, gains double importance in light of the small difference between the two teams, as Al-Qadisiyah sits at the top of the standings with 25 points from 10 matches, while Al-Hilal follows it with 24 points from 9 matches, with the latter having a postponed confrontation against Riyadh.
Al-Nasr, which snatched a valuable and difficult victory against NEOM in the last round, will host, on Friday evening, its counterpart Al-Faisaly in Al-Majmaah Sports City, at a time when Al-Ittihad, which was proud of its quartet in the last round, will meet its counterpart in Diriyah in Jeddah.
Returning to the top of this round, between Al-Qadisiyah and Al-Hilal, it carries another title, which is the expected return of Saudi star Salem Al-Dosari to Al-Hilal’s options, after he recorded his first appearance this season during the final minutes of facing Al-Hazm.
Al-Qadisiyah enters the confrontation in high spirits after snatching a fatal victory against Al-Taawoun in Buraidah, with a goal scored by Dutchman Tijani Reynders in the sixth minute of stoppage time, so that the team maintains its position in the lead.
Al-Qadisiyah's task was not easy for Al-Taawoun, which succeeded in imposing a tight defensive organization that limited the danger of the Al-Sharqawi team's players, before Reynders succeeded in breaking the defensive resilience and snatching the 3 points.
Irishman Brendan Rodgers, coach of Al-Qadisiyah, is counting on a group of prominent names that contributed to placing the team at the top of the standings, led by Reynders, Italian striker Matteo Retegui, and Mexican Julián Quiñones, in addition to German Julian Weigl, who represents one of the important elements in the midfield.
Rodgers praised the mentality shown by his players in the face of Al-Taawoun, stressing that his team deserved the win despite the difficulty of the confrontation, and pointing to the role played by goalkeeper Quinn Castiles in his decisive saves.
On the other hand, Al Hilal arrives in Dammam looking for a victory that will return it to the top of the standings, after it succeeded in overcoming Al Hazm with a goal to no return at the “Kingdom Arena”, in a confrontation that was not easy for the capital city team, which needed to make a great effort to secure its points.
Al Hilal has the opportunity to rise to the top with 27 points if the victory is achieved, two points ahead of Al Qadisiyah, while retaining its postponed match against Riyadh, which gives it an additional incentive to come out with a positive result from Dammam.
Inzaghi is counting on the capabilities of a group of stars, led by Brazilian Gabriel Martinelli, Englishman Ollie Watkins, Serbian Sergei Savic, and Portuguese Ruben Neves.
Inzaghi described the Al-Qadisiyah match as “a very important confrontation against a high-level team,” stressing that the technical staff will work to recover the players and prepare them appropriately, in light of the crowded match schedule.
In Al Majmaah, Al-Nasr will host Al-Faisaly at Al Majmaah Sports City Stadium, looking to continue chasing the top two, after raising its score to 22 points from 9 matches, occupying third place.
Al-Nasr enters the match after its victory over NEOM with a free goal in the last round, signed by Portuguese Joao Felix, in a match that witnessed his compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo miss a penalty kick, so the team continues to collect points despite the difficulty of the confrontation.
Al-Nasr is looking forward to achieving a new victory that will keep it close to the top, especially since it has a postponed match against Al-Ahly, which gives it an additional opportunity to strengthen its position in the ranking table.
Australian Postecoglou, Al-Nasr coach, is counting on the attacking power of his team, led by Ronaldo, Felix and Senegalese Sadio Mane, along with Brazilian Angelo, in an attempt to overcome a competitor who is in turn looking to improve his results.
As for Al-Faisaly, it enters the confrontation with 7 points, after it emerged in an exciting draw against Al-Shabab with a score of 2-2 in the last round, after its success in coming back from two goals behind.
Al-Faisaly hopes to use the morale boost that the return against Al-Shabab gave him, and achieve a positive result against Al-Nasr, especially since the team showed the ability to compete despite the difficult circumstances it faced during the last match.
In Jeddah, Al-Ittihad will welcome its counterpart, Al-Diriyah, at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium, in a confrontation during which the home owners will seek to confirm their strong return, after achieving a major victory over Al-Ittifaq, 4-1, in Dammam.
Al-Ittihad enters the match occupying fourth place with 20 points, looking to continue reducing the gap with the leading teams, especially since victory will give it the opportunity to benefit from the result of the summit between Al-Qadisiyah and Al-Hilal.
Al-Ittihad regained its balance after two losses to Al-Hilal in the league, and to Shabab Al-Ahly of the Emirates in the AFC Elite Champions League, before presenting a distinguished offensive performance against Al-Ettifaq, during which it succeeded in scoring 4 goals.
The German Wessing, Al-Ittihad coach, hopes to continue benefiting from the available offensive solutions, led by Moroccan Youssef En-Nesyri, Dutchman Steven Bergwijn, and Nigerian George Ilinykhina.
Vissing had praised the success of his substitutions against Al-Ettifaq, after he introduced En-Nesyri, who scored two goals, stressing that his decision to replace Ilyinichina was due to fatigue, despite the good level the player presented.
On the other hand, Diriyah arrives in Jeddah in high spirits after defeating Riyadh in the last round, raising its score to 15 points and advancing to seventh place.
Al-Diriyah aspires to continue its positive results and produce a result that strengthens its position in the standings, despite the difficulty of the task facing Al-Ittihad, which is gradually regaining its offensive balance.
