KUWAIT: The Head of the Kuwait Paralympic Committee, Mansour Al-Sarheed said on Tuesday that Kuwait was set to compete in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games with three athletes. The Kuwaiti delegation includes Faisal Al-Rajhi, Faisal Sorour, and Dhari Al-Butti, who would be competing in track and field events. In a statement to KUNA, Al-Sarheed said that Al-Rajhi would compete in the wheelchair racing competitions in the T54 category, Sorour would participate in the Shot Put competition in the F42 category, Al-Butti would also compete in the Shot Put competition, but in the F37 category.

Al-Sarheed emphasized that the committee has diligently prepared the three athletes, who qualified for the Games through impressive performances in global and regional championships. He added that the aim was to achieve the best possible results and raise Kuwait’s flag in one of the largest multi-sport event in the world. He also noted that Sorour and Al-Butti were currently undergoing intensive training in Turkiye under Coach Ahmad Harbi, while Al-Rajhi was training in Sharjah, UAE, under Coach Nizar Ramadan.

Faisal Sorour

Dhari Al-Butti

Meanwhile, athlete Faisal Sorour expressed his and his teammates’ readiness to achieve top positions and reach the podium, thanks to the excellent training camps they have attended both locally and abroad. Sorour, who won a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, said that he was determined to secure another medal for Kuwait in Paris. On his part, Nizar Ramadan, Kuwait’s coach for wheelchair racing, affirmed that Al-Rajhi was training intensively, twice daily, with great enthusiasm to win a Paralympic medal.

Ramadan noted that Sharjah was chosen for the training camp due to its excellent facilities, which have helped Al-Rajhi improve his performance, he was optimistic that the Kuwaiti team would win several medals despite the strong competition. Kuwait first participated in the Paralympics in 1980 and earned a total of 52 medals, 12 gold, 18 silver, and 22 bronze, and this year, the Kuwaiti delegation hope to win more at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, which would be taking place from August 28 to September 8 and would feature 23 different sports events.

The Paralympic Games, organized by the International Paralympic Committee, are held every four years following the Olympic Games and in the same host city, they feature athletes with physical disabilities, including muscle weakness, limb deficiency, paralysis, leg length difference, short stature, and visual impairment. — KUNA