Kuwait City, Kuwait, June 1, 2022: The first Gulf Games to feature women athletes ended in triumph for hosts Kuwait, who finished top of the medals standings and also top of the pops among female fans, who outnumbered their male counterparts during the 16 days of competition.
As the curtain fell Tuesday, May 31, on the 3rd GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) Games Kuwait 2022 held under the patronage of The Emir, His Highness Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, a survey undertaken by organisers showed that more female fans turned up in the stands than male, by a ratio of 60-40, giving sport a huge lift in the country.
“We are very pleased not only with the outcome of the competition, but also with the fact that more and more women are taking a keen interest in sports. This can only be good for the future of Kuwaiti sport,” said a pleased President of the Kuwait Olympic Committee Sheikh Fahad Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.
Kuwait finished the Gulf Games with a haul of 96 medals, including 36 gold, 28 silver and 32 bronze medals. In second place was Bahrain with 64 medals (20-23-21) followed by the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman.
“A notable feature is that Kuwait not only won the most gold medals, but it also won the most silver and bronze medals too, showing that across the board our athletes are making huge progress,” Sheikh Fahad pointed out.
The Games with 1,870 athletes in attendance in 16 sports began on a low note with organisers pushing back the start of competition on May 13 by three days due to the death of President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nayhan of the United Arab Emirates.
The action began on May 16 in whirlwind fashion, literally with a raging sandstorm blowing in from Iraq. But even this force of nature, which shut down Kuwait International Airport, could not stop Qatar speedster Tosin Ogunode from taking off with the gold medal in the men’s 100m finals.
It was full-on action following that spectacular opening day – organisers had only to postpone one event in track and field, the javelin – with Bahrain dominating the athletic events finishing with a rich haul of 17 gold medals, 14 silver and eight bronze medals.
One gold medal which escaped their clutches was in the high jump where Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar shared the spoils with compatriot Hamdi Ali on the orders of Qatari team officials who asked their star athlete to quit the competition after Ali had failed to clear 2.18 metres.
In the other blue riband event at multi-sports Games, swimming, Kuwait dominated winning 12 of the 17 gold medals on offer. It was also in the pool that 11 new Games records were set with three local swimmers – Rashed Al-Tarmoom, Abbas Qali and Abdulrazzaq Waleed – grabbing a brace of new marks each.
There was a milestone crossed in the boardroom too when the GCC executive committee unanimously decided to introduce a number of new multi-sports Games from next year, beginning with the 1st GCC Youth Games in the United Arab Emirates in 2023; the 1st GCC Indoor Martial Arts Games, Saudi Arabia in 2024; 2nd GCC Beach Games, Oman in 2025; and the 4th GCC Games, Qatar in 2026.
In addition, a proposal put forward by Chair of the Olympic Council of Asia’s Gender Equity Committee, Sheikha Hayat Bint Abdulaziz Al-Khalifa, that all sports at the GCC Games be inclusive of female athletes was met with approval – starting with the 1st Youth Games in UAE next year.
This time female athletes only participated in six sports: athletics, basketball (3x3), cycling, esports, futsal and padel.
But that didn’t matter for the female fans who turned out in their numbers.
Final Medal Standings
Gold Silver Bronze Total
1. Kuwait 36 28 32 96
2. Bahrain 20 23 21 64
3. UAE 18 16 16 50
4. Saudi Arabia 16 22 29 67
5. Qatar 16 21 15 52
6. Oman 12 5 16 33
