HANGZHOU, China: The Saudi U-23 football team took the lead in the second group on Thursday after winning their second match against Mongolia at the 2023 Asian Games. The Green Falcons thrashed Mongolia 3-0 with Haitham Asiri, Mohamed Marran and Naif Masoud scoring on the 18th, 49th and 74th minutes, respectively. The Saudis now lead the group with three points following a goalless draw with Iran in their opening game. Saudi female rower Haya Al-Mami has qualified for the semifinals of the women’s single sculls competition (W1x) after finishing third in the second round. The semifinal will take place at 3 p.m. on Friday at the Fuyang Lake Water Sports Center, and will include competitors from South Korea, Chinese Taipei, Uzbekistan and China. In the men’s lightweight double sculls (LM2x) competition, Saudi duo Turki Al-Aarf and Sultan Al-Shali advanced to group B after finishing fifth in the second round. Their teammate Rakan Ali Reda advanced to group C in the men’s single sculls (M1x) competition after finishing sixth in the second round. On Friday, the Saudi table tennis team start their participation when they face the host country China at 6 pm. The draw for the table tennis competition on Thursday placed the Saudi team in the group with China and Vietnam. The competitions involve 20 teams in the men’s category and 18 in the women’s category. The Saudi e-sports team held its first training session at the e-sports hall in the Jiang Hotel in Hangzhou, with 22 players taking part. Over 6,000 journalists and 1,500 photographers have applied to cover the Asian Games.
