Oman- Barakat al Harthi breaks his own 100m national record
Date
5/31/2016 5:37:50 AM
Barakat al Harthi's preparations for the Rio Olympics got a big boost when the 27 year old broke his own 100m national record on Sunday.
Barakat bettered his record of 10.16 seconds, set last year in South Korea, at a meet in the Bulgarian city of Sliven when he clocked 10.14s. His gold medal at the Military World Games in Mungyeong in South Korea in October last year had earned him a direct spot in the Olympic Games. Speaking to Muscat Daily from Sliven, Barakat said, 'I am happy with my timing and the ongoing training under the Bulgarian coach Yanko Bratanov.'
Barakat (left) with his coach Yanko Bratanov in Sliven, Bulgaria
Barakat is in Bulgaria as part of his Rio preparations and will be training under Bratanov till Rio. He arrived in Sliven two weeks ago and will be there till July before he flies out to Cuba for the final camp ahead of the Rio games which will be held from August 5-21. Barakat said the 'new national record' is a result of hard work and training. 'It is my constant effort to improve and get better and better. Rio Olympics is the biggest stage and will have the world's best sprinters in action. I want to give my best and better my career-best time. Having grabbed a direct qualification spot, I hope to get past the preliminary heats and a possible semifinal berth,' he said. Barakat's new national record was welcomed by the Oman Athletics Association chairman and the OOC vice-president, Sheikh Saif al Hosni. Speaking from Manama, Bahrain, Hosni said, 'It is good news and shows that his preparations are on track. Barakat has reposed our faith and trust by constantly improving over the past couple of years. The long training camp in the US under John Smith last year helped him win gold in South Korea with a national record that got him a direct Rio entry. 'And now our programme for him under Bulgarian coach Bratanov is yielding results. We have seen that if talented athletes are provided strong support and coaching over a longer duration, they usually achieve good results. Barakat's case is a perfect example. 'I hope his training in Bulgaria and then in Cuba ahead of Rio will get him in the best shape for a positive result at the Olympics, which is undoubtedly the world's biggest stage for an athlete.' Prior to Barakat's Bulgaria trip, the 2010 Asian Games bronze medallist was training with Bratanov in Bahrain from the start of the year. The Bulgarian coach has trained in the past Qatar's Asian 100m champions Samuel Francis and Femi Ogunode. A former European 400m indoor champion and an Olympic finalist, the 63 year old Bratanov is currently coach of Bahraini sprinters.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.