UAE wins gold in first Special Olympics event

By Angel Chan

ABU DHABI 9 March 2019: Micah Hambleton, 16, who is representing the UAE, took home gold in Division 1 of the Special Olympics World Games Abu Dhabi 2019 Triathlon competition, yesterday morning.

Triathlon category for the World Games is the first competition of the Games and has been integrated into ITU’s global event calendar for the very first time in Special Olympic history. The event also saw the first official World Games medals handed out.

33 athletes of determination from 14 countries participated in the triathlon, which featured a 750m swim, 20km cycle and 5km run at Yas Marina Circuit.

Commenting on his winning performance, Micah said: “Winning gold in the first competition of the Games feels absolutely incredible. I have never felt more proud than I did going over the finish line and representing the UAE. I have been training really hard ahead of the competition and I thought I would do well but winning is a dream come true. I hope this will inspire more people of determination to get involved in sports and show the world just how successful we can be.”