John McAuley
The 2016 Rio Olympics begin on August 5, and the UAE will be sending 13 athletes to compete in multiple events, such as judo, shooting and weightlifting. Before the action from Rio starts, our John McAuley looks back at times the UAE made a mark on the world's biggest stage.
Read more: Rio 2016 – Meet the men and women representing the UAE at the Olympics
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Sheikh Ahmed strikes gold (Athens 2004)
Competing at his second Summer Games, Sheikh Ahmed bin Hasher contested two shooting disciplines: the trap and the double trap. After reaching the final of the former, where he finished one point from bronze in fourth, the royal reigned supreme in the double trap. With 189 points, Sheikh Ahmed defeated his nearest competitor by a mammoth 10 points, equalling the Olympic record and claiming what remains the UAE’s only medal at the Games. It just happened to be gold. Announced as champion, Sheikh Ahmed embraced his rivals then took his place atop the podium, UAE flag draped across his shoulders with medal around his neck, as the national anthem rang out. The UAE’s Olympic committee later labelled Sheikh Ahmed the country’s “greatest-ever sportsman”.
Sheikha Maitha flies the flag for region (Beijing 2008)
In the summer of 2008, two notable distinctions went to Sheikha Maitha bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the daughter of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai. In carrying the UAE flag into a teeming Beijing National Stadium at the opening ceremony, Sheikha Maitha became the first female flag-bearer from the Gulf region at an Olympics. She led seven other UAE competitors into the venue, including three more members of Dubai’s royal family: Sheikh Saeed, Sheikh Ahmed and Sheikha Lafita. Then, Sheikha Maitha, already an accomplished martial artist who excelled in karate and taekwondo, proved pioneer once more by contesting the 67kg taekwondo event, becoming the first female to represent the UAE at an Olympics.
UAE take to the global stage (Los Angeles 1984)
In 1979, eight years after the country was formed, the UAE’s National Olympic Committee (NOC) was founded. A year later, it joined the International Olympic Committee and by 1984 its athletes were representing the country at the Los Angeles Games – the UAE’s first appearance at the Olympics. Its delegation, headed by Ahmed Al Fardan, the general secretary of the NOC, included eight athletes: Ibrahim Aziz, Khamis Khamis, Rashid Al Garbi, Sultan Marzooq, Shadad Saeed, Mubarak Ismail, Mohammed Abdullah and Hilal Mohammed. They contested various track and field events at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, ranging from the 100 metres, the 400m, the 800m, the 110m hurdles, the 400m hurdles, the 4x100m relay and the long jump. The UAE’s Olympic journey had begun in earnest.
Matar plays protagonist at Theatre of Dreams (London 2012)
After 28 years of failed attempts, the UAE football team finally reached the Olympics. Luis Suarez and Uruguay were first up in a daunting Group A, at Manchester United’s Old Trafford. The UAE struck first, when Ismail Matar raced onto Omar Abdulrahman’s sublime pass on 22 minutes, rounded the goalkeeper and slotted home the ball. The Emirates had announced their arrival on the world stage. Mahdi Ali’s young team eventually lost 2-1, and took a solitary point from subsequent matches against Great Britain and Senegal, but they gained many admirers with their attack-minded style. Matar, previously injury-plagued and out of form, looked reborn and almost scored another against Uruguay, this time with a header. Nevertheless, he had provided a captain’s contribution: the UAE’s first Olympic goal.
Gold medalist gets royal treatment (London 2012)
As it transpired, the UAE played a pivotal role in Peter Wilson’s success at the London Games, when the Briton took double trap gold. The towering Englishman, already a world record holder, had turned to Sheikh Ahmed after his UK funding was cut in 2008, with the 2004 gold medalist training Wilson at Nad Al Sheba. Sheikh Ahmed could not compete himself since a heart condition forced him to give up competitive shooting, but he travelled to London to support his protege. Sat in the main stand at the Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich, Sheikh Ahmed watched Wilson overcome nerves and some wayward shooting in the final to emerge victorious. Wilson was soon greeted with a warm embrace from his mentor. He then accepted his gold.