23 Oct 2025
Aspire Academy student-athletes have enjoyed a successful few weeks in October, with medals and podium finishes at international competitions in athletics, padel, swimming, and squash.
Aspire Academy student-athletes continued to shine on the international stage in October, delivering standout performances across swimming, athletics, padel, and squash. There was a historic medal at the Asian Aquatics Championships and teenage triumphs at the West Asian Under-20 Athletics Championships. There were also standout performances in padel and squash.
Aspire Academy Graduate Mohamed Mahmoud part of history at Asian Aquatics Championships
Qatar claimed its first-ever medals at the Asian Aquatics Championships at the 11th edition in Ahmedabad, India, with Aspire Academy graduate Mohamed Mahmoud winning one of them.
The 2022 graduate took bronze in the men’s 50 breaststroke in a race won by China’s Qin Haiyang, the 2023 World Champion in the event and an Olympic gold medallist in the 4 x 100m medley relay.
The honour of Qatar’s first gold and silver medals at this level were claimed by Ali Tamer Hassan in the men’s 50m and 100m freestyle races, respectively.
Aspire Academy student-athlete Hamza Shalan and 2025 graduate Abdalla Elghamry also represented Qatar at the championships, which feature 25 Asian nations, including strong swimming countries such as China and Japan.
Mohamed Mahmoud and Hamza Shalan participated in all three breaststroke events: 50m, 100m, and 200m. As well as his bronze in the 50m, Mohamed Mahmoud narrowly missed qualifying for the finals of the other two races as he finished 9th in the heats, with only the top 8 advancing.
For his part, Hamza Shalan finished 11th in the 50m and 12th in both the 100m and 200m heats.
In the 200m heats, he swam against Qin Haiyang, with the Qatari swimmer setting a new personal best and a new national age group record.
Mohamed Mahmoud also competed in the 200m individual medley with an 11th-place time in the heats.
A back injury limited Abdalla Eghamry’s participation at the championships. In the individual 50m backstroke heats, he finished 11th and helped the Qatar team qualify for the final of the 4x100m freestyle relay and 9th in the heats of the 4x100 medley relay.
Unfortunately, Abdalla Eghamry’s injury meant Qatar were unable to compete in the 4x100m freestyle relay.
Teenagers impress at the West Asian Under-20 Athletics Championships
Three Aspire Academy teenagers won medals for Qatar at the 3rd West Asian Under-20 Athletics Championships in Beirut, Lebanon.
Younes Al-Balushi, who is 17, claimed a joint gold medal in the pole vault along with another Qatari athlete, Abdullah Zakaria.
The pair both cleared 4.40m and decided to take a gold medal each rather than continue jumping in order to determine an outright winner.
The decision was reminiscent of Aspire Academy graduate Mutaz Barshim and Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi’s agreement to both win high jump gold medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
There was a bronze medal for 16-year-old student-athlete Aboubakar Idriss in the 110m hurdles, while Aspire Academy-trained Mohsin Faisal Abdelrahim won silver in the long jump.
Aspire Academy’s Essa Al-Kuwari claims FIP Promises Bahrain padel title.
Aspire Academy padel player Essa Al-Kuwari triumphed in the under-14s at the FIP Promises Bahrain tournament, which featured nine Academy student-athletes.
Essa Al-Kuwari teamed up with the United Arab Emirates’ player Majid Alabdulla to win the event that is part of the International Padel Federation’s (FIP) global circuit for junior players.
On the way to winning the title, the pair overcame two other Aspire Academy student-athletes, Nawaf Alyafei and Ali Abulrahman Al-Malik, in the semi-finals.
Essa Al-Kuwari and his partner also competed in the under-16 event, reaching the semi-finals. Ali Abdulrahman Al-Malik also competed in the under-16s this time with Essa Abdulla Ahli of the UAE; the pair also lost in the semi-finals.
There was valuable international exposure and competitive experience for student-athletes Hamad Mohammed Al-Modadi, Ahmad Al-Abdulla Hassan, Ali Ebrahim Al-Malik, Abdulla Al Qadi, Ahmad Al-Abdulla Hassan and Rayen Meknassi, who all competed at the event.
Aspire Academy Squash players claim podium places at European events
Aspire Academy student-athletes Omar Farag and Aly Ouda have made an impressive start to the European Squash Federation (ESF) season with top-three places at events in Europe.
Omar Farag was third in the boys under-15 category at the Nordic Junior Open in Sweden. A week later, he went one better to finish as runner-up at the Hungarian Junior Open.
Aly Ouda narrowly missed out on a bronze medal in Sweden as he lost in the third-place play-off to finish fourth. He also improved in Hungary, winning a play-off to clinch third place.
There was a podium finish for Aspire Academy-trained Mohammed Essa Al Tamimi in Sweden as he lost in the final of the boys under-13s.
Another Aspire Academy-trained player who impressed was 10-year-old Zoe Makaryous, who, in the absence of an under-11 section in Hungary, played in the under-13s and, despite this, dominated her opposition to emerge as the winner on her debut on the ESF circuit.
The tournament in Hungary, an ESF Bronze competition, saw a total of 11 Aspire Academy players taking part, with five coaches overseeing their progress.
For Omar Farag, Aly Ouda and Mohammed Essa Al Tamimi, it was a second event in 10 days after their participation in Sweden.
Of the 11, five competed in the under-13 category, including Yousef Al Tamimi and Maaz Bin Fahad, who played in the section because there was no under-11 age bracket. Also taking part were Mohammed Essa Al Tamimi, Khalifa El Emadi, and Hassan Alian, who was playing in his final under-13 event as he finished sixth overall.
Joining Omar Farag in the under-15 draw were Abdullah Al Sharshani and Hamad Al Riyahi, while in the under-17 bracket, Aly Ouda was joined by Talal Al Badr, whose debut in the age group was hampered by a slight injury as he finished 8th overall.
Aspire Academy squash coach Francesco Busi highlighted the benefits of competing in such tournaments.
“As coaches, we are delighted to see players reach the podium in these events in Europe. It really shows that Aspire Academy and Qatar are moving in the right direction as we develop these young players,” he said.
“We must also recognise the effort and dedication of all the players as they strive to improve and learn from these events.”
“It is not just the events they learn from but also spending time away from home, travelling, experiencing different surroundings and interacting with people from around the world.”
“We are confident that, working with the players, they can continue to develop and improve.”