Saudi Athletes Win Silver, Bronze Medals at Asian Para Games 2023

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, The cauldron is lit during the opening ceremony of the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China, Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023. (Jiang Han/Xinhua via AP)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, The cauldron is lit during the opening ceremony of the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China, Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023. (Jiang Han/Xinhua via AP)
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Saudi Athletes Win Silver, Bronze Medals at Asian Para Games 2023

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, The cauldron is lit during the opening ceremony of the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China, Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023. (Jiang Han/Xinhua via AP)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, The cauldron is lit during the opening ceremony of the 4th Asian Para Games in Hangzhou, China, Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023. (Jiang Han/Xinhua via AP)

Saudi athletes Hani Al-Nakhli and Abdulrahman Al-Qurashi secured silver and bronze medals, respectively, at the Asian Para Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China.
This brings Saudi Arabia's medal tally at the games to nine: two gold, four silver, and three bronze.
Al-Nakhli came second in discus in the F33 category with a distance of 10.53 meters, while wheelchair racer A-Qurashi came third in men's 400m T53 event, finishing at a time of 51 seconds.
The Asian Para Games 2023 will end Saturday after competitions that included more than 4,000 athletes from 44 Asian countries.
Prince Fahad Bin Jalawi Alsaud, Vice President at Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee and head of the Saudi delegation participating in the games, will attend the closing ceremony at the Big Lotus Stadium, which hosted the opening ceremony of the games.



Julián Álvarez Picking up the Scoring Pace with Atletico Madrid

Atletico's Julián Álvarez of Atletico celebrates scoring during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Sparta Prague and Atletico Madrid in Prague, Czech Republic, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Michaela Rihova/CTK via AP)
Atletico's Julián Álvarez of Atletico celebrates scoring during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Sparta Prague and Atletico Madrid in Prague, Czech Republic, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Michaela Rihova/CTK via AP)
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Julián Álvarez Picking up the Scoring Pace with Atletico Madrid

Atletico's Julián Álvarez of Atletico celebrates scoring during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Sparta Prague and Atletico Madrid in Prague, Czech Republic, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Michaela Rihova/CTK via AP)
Atletico's Julián Álvarez of Atletico celebrates scoring during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Sparta Prague and Atletico Madrid in Prague, Czech Republic, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Michaela Rihova/CTK via AP)

When the referee whistled for the free kick just outside the area, Atletico Madrid forward Julián Álvarez quickly picked up the ball and moved in position to take the shot.

“When I saw the free kick, I told Rodri (Rodrigo De Paul) that I felt confident with the shot,” Álvarez said. “And it was a great goal.”

Álvarez, Atletico's main signing in the offseason, has not been lacking confidence lately. The Argentina forward curled in the free kick shot in the 15th minute for the first of his two goals in the team’s 6-0 rout of Brest in the Champions League on Tuesday — the team’s biggest ever away win in European competitions.

“We'll keep rotating who takes the free kicks,” said Álvarez, who also found the net in the 59th.

It was Álvarez’s seventh goal in the last 10 matches, and third in his last three games across all competitions. The 24-year-old had a slow start to his first season with Atletico, scoring twice in 10 matches.

“It was a matter of time before we started connecting well with each other,” said Álvarez, who joined Atletico after two seasons at Manchester City. “We have to stay on this path to keep improving.”

Ángel Correa also scored two goals for Atletico, with Marcos Llorente and Antoine Griezmann adding one each.

“We know that in this format of the competition we need to keep adding the three points and scoring goals,” Álvarez said. “It's important to get the points and the goals.”

Atletico was sitting in 13th place in the 36-team league standings.