The first gold medal she won was when she competed in the women’s 50-meter freestyle competition and finished the competition within a span of 29.29 seconds. Second place went to Hana Jaber, with quite the close call of 30.01 seconds, and finally in third place, Mashael-Ayed was awarded the bronze for the time of 30.08 seconds.
The second competition Al-Baroudi won was the 50-meter breaststroke coemption, where she completed the game with 38.20 seconds. Maryam Mustafa, with 39.37 seconds, was awarded second place, and bronze went to Mashael Al-Ayed with 41 seconds.
The Games the Saudi swimmer participated in were held at the Water Sports Hall in the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Olympic Complex.
However, the Saudi Games competition are happening at various places around the city, namely 22 sports facilities, and participation has amounted to around 6000 athletes competing in 45 sport events, both women and men. To support inclusion and diversity, the games will also have 5 events for the Paralympic Games including 180 sport competitions. It is also the largest national sports event in the history of Saudi Arabia.
The cool thing about the games is that they offer the highest prizes in the history of the Gulf area, with a total accumulating to more than SAR 200 million. The Saudi Games 2022 were created to foster the sense of healthy competitions and create an athletic environment in the kingdom that helps young talented people advance themselves in sports.
The sports included are archery, badminton, basketball, bowling, boxing, camel racing, cycling, equestrian endurance and jumping, fencing, futsal, golf, gymnastics, handball, judo, karate, weightlifting, sailing, swimming, wrestling, and many more. The Games have been going since Oct 21 and will end today on November the 7th.
Considering the impact sports has on improving people’s lives and health, these type of events and sports in general will continue to play an imperative role in the Saudi Vision 2030, which is the pivoting strategy behind the kingdom’s transformation.
Source: Cosmo Politian
