ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Qudrat Ullah stormed into the semi-finals of the men’s 55kg boxing event at the 6th Islamic Solidarity Games in Riyadh on Saturday, guaranteeing at least a bronze medal for the country.
“Our boxer Qudrat Ullah delivered a stunning victory over his Sudani opponent Yousif Hassa Abdulaziz Mohamed Othman and secured his place in the semifinals guaranteeing a medal for Pakistan,” Pakistan Olympic Association said in a post on X (formerly Twitter.)
Competing at The Promenade–Art Tower, the 20-year-old boxer from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa dominated Sudan’s Mohamed Othman 10-0 in a one-sided quarter-final, winning unanimously on points. Qudrat will next face Egypt’s Amir Mohamed Farag Ahmed Kelany in Sunday’s semi-final bout.
Earlier, Pakistan’s Fatima Zahra made history by securing the country’s first-ever women’s boxing medal at the Games. The 19-year-old from Sargodha defeated Algeria’s Hamda Melissa 5-0 in the 60kg quarter-final to book her place in the semi-final, where she will also meet an Egyptian opponent.
In swimming events at the Olympic Complex Swimming Hall, Jehanara Nabi advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s 50m butterfly after clocking 30.77 seconds in her heat but narrowly missed out on a place in the final. Teammate Mishael Aisha Hayat Yousaf finished fifth in her heat with a time of 31.42 seconds.
In the men’s 50m butterfly, Ali Mohammad Mitha recorded 26.31 seconds to finish seventh in his heat, while Syed Mohammad Sodik Malik Hatim placed seventh in another with 26.13 seconds. Turkey’s Berk Ozkul led all qualifiers with a time of 24.45 seconds.
In the freestyle category, Hussein Shawky finished fifth in the men’s 50m heat with a time of 24.75 seconds, followed by Syed Mohammad Danish Khan, who clocked 25.68 for sixth. Pakistan’s mixed 4x100m freestyle relay team came third in their heat with 3:55.82, trailing Azerbaijan (3:47.31) but finishing ahead of Kyrgyzstan.
