End of the road for Uganda in Saudi Arabia

Apr 21, 2005

BONIFACE Kiprop’s 10000m bronze medal helped Uganda be named amongst the 32 of 56 countries that made it to the medal table at the inaugural Islamic games held in Saudi Arabia.

By Norman Katende
in Jeddah


Highlights
Table tennis

Uganda 3 Turkeymenistan 0
Uganda 0 Syria 3
Egypt 3 Uganda 0

Athletics

10000m (finals)
3 Boniface Kiprop

Swimming
4 X 200m relays –freestyle
5 Uganda 12:18.82

BONIFACE Kiprop’s 10000m bronze medal helped Uganda be named amongst the 32 of 56 countries that made it to the medal table at the inaugural Islamic games held in Saudi Arabia. The games were officially closed yesterday at King AbullahAziz stadium in Makkah.

Running in the sweltering hot temperatures in Makkah, Kiprop lost his lead in only the last of the 25-lap race but helped spring Uganda amongst the top nations.

No medals were won in weightlifting, table tennis and swimming.
This exposed Uganda’s lack of exposure to international competitions.

Weightlifter Badru Namujje tried his level best but finished fifth overall in the 77kg category while table tennis star Cyrus Muwanga, started well, winning some games but later completely faltered.

For the other weightlifters, the competition between the Asian and North African states proved to much.

For the swimmers, the Olympic size swimming pool was already a blow as they had never been exposed to it.

The Islamic Sports solidarity organisation however took a big stride in uniting and changing the image of Moslems.
Maybe Tehran 2009 will tell more of the experience they had got in organising this game.

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