HANGZHOU — Saudi rider Abdullah Al-Sharbati dominated the Arabian platform in the showjumping competition, clinching a gold medal on Friday at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou. Al-Sharbati, 41, completed the course in 39.68 seconds, surpassing the Emiratis Omar Al-Janibi with 42.31 seconds and Abdullah Al-Marri with 42.45 seconds. This marks Al-Sharbati's second gold in the current games, following his collaboration with Abdulrahman Al-Rajhi, Ramzi Al-Dahami, and Mishari Al-Harbi to secure the team showjumping title. Al-Sharbati has previously earned gold medals in the team event in 2006, 2010, and 2018, as well as an individual gold in 2014. He also contributed to the team's bronze in the London 2012 Olympics. With this latest victory, Saudi Arabia has accumulated four gold medals, securing the sixteenth position in the overall rankings. Saudi equestrianism embarked on its successful journey at the Asian Games in Doha in 2006, claiming team gold, which they defended in Guangzhou in 2010. Ramzi Al-Dahami and Khaled Al-Aid also added individual gold and bronze medals. In Incheon 2014, Abdullah Al-Sharbati won individual gold, and the team secured silver. The success continued in Jakarta 2018 with the team winning gold in showjumping. In the +84 kg category, Saudi athlete Tariq Hamdi secured the bronze after defeating Nepali Biplov Lal Shrestha 9-1. This came after a tough loss to Kyrgyzstan's Adilat Shadikanov with a score of 4-5 in the semifinals. Hamadi, 24, said: "Certainly, the ambition was for gold. My performance wasn't great, but I secured a medal. We'll try to make up for it in the World Championship."
