Ahmed Hamada: No hurdles background, no problem

IN COMMEMORATING BAHRAIN'S 26-MEDAL HAUL AT THE 2018 ASIAN GAMES IN JAKARTA-PALEMBANG (IT'S BEST-EVER IN THE HISTORY OF THE QUADRENNIAL ASIAD), SPORTSBH SITS DOWN WITH THE FIRST-EVER BAHRAINI TO WIN AN ASIAD MEDAL, WHO ALSO HAPPENS TO BE THE FIRST BAHRAINI TO WIN AN ASIAN GAMES GOLD MEDAL.

IN THIS EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW, AHMED HAMADA TELLS US THE AMAZING STORY OF HOW HIS HISTORIC VICTORIES COULD NEVER HAVE HAPPENED.

Ahmed Hamada shows off his bronze medal at the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi

Manama -- Ahmed Hamada was Bahrain’s first-ever medallist at the Asian Games in the 1982 edition in New Delhi, India. He then became the kingdom's first-ever gold medallist at the 1986 Asiad in Seoul, South Korea.

But, according to the now-retired hurdler, things could have been much different.

Growing up, Hamada loved running for his school in the middle distance races, and he excelled doing so.

But not until a sudden, unforeseen change early on in his senior career did he realise his full potential in a different discipline.

A recommendation from his former physiotherapist, one that came out of nowhere, completely altered his athletics destiny, and little did they know at that time that it would lead to Bahraini sporting history.

“The big thing about my victories in the Asian Games was that I won without a big background in the hurdles,” Hamada, now 56, tells SPORTSBH.

“When I started running in school, I was more into the middle distance races, like the 800 metres. I was set to compete in the Arab championships in Baghdad in 1979, and my physiotherapist, who was an American, saw my physique and my talent. Just a couple of days before the start of the meeting, he asked me why don’t I try to run the 400m hurdles.

“So, I thought, why not? I prepared the best I could and in my first official race, I did well. My coach came to me and told me that he had good and bad news: he said the good news was that I qualified for the next round, but then the bad news was that I had to run again in just over an hour-and-a-half (laughs).”

Ahmed Hamada competes in this undated file photo

Hamada’s potential was obvious, and in just a couple of more years training under renowned American coach Vic Godfrey, who today has more than 50 years of experience coaching athletes around the world, Hamada was winning races at the highest levels, including at international Grand Prix meetings and other major events.

“I did well in the hurdles,” he recalls. “But it was under Coach Godfrey that I learned how to perfect my style – the way to run properly and how to tackle a hurdle. He really taught me a lot.

“I was breaking Bahraini, Arab and Asian records and winning at meetings, and then in 1981 at the Arab championships in Tunisia, I won the 400m gold medal.”

At the Arab competition, Hamada was able to beat one of his heroes en route to winning his crown: Talib Faisal from Iraq.

“Talib was one of the most popular Arab athletes at the time; he was at the top of the sport, and to beat him was something I felt was an incredible achievement,” Hamada says. “He really inspired me then, and to this day he continues to do so when I think of him.”

At the 1982 Asian Games in in Delhi, however, Hamada did not meet his golden expectations and was given quite a stern punishment by his coach – one that he only smiles about today.

“On the night of the final in Delhi, I felt a lot of pressure to win the gold, and I lost,” Hamada remembers. “Even though I won a bronze medal and it was Bahrain’s first-ever medal at the Asian Games, my coach was very angry because he knew what I was capable of and he saw that I lost my control.

“He made me run back to the hotel for 15 kilometres as a punishment,” Hamada laughs.

“I was able to redeem myself with another Arab gold medal the following year in Amman, and that led to my Asian Games success in 1986 in Seoul. That year, I also won a gold medal in the 400m at the World Military Track and Field Championships in Rome.”

Hamada enjoyed his many years as an elite, world-class athlete, and he hopes to now pass on his wisdom as a coach to many young aspiring Bahraini sprinters and hurdlers.

“The change to the hurdles really changed my life,” Hamada says. “It made me a real athlete, and it was an honour to compete for Bahrain on the international stage. All the Bahraini athletes knew me and I was proud to be their hero.”

Ahmed Hamada with his gold medal at the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea