Bahraini athlete Maryam Yusuf Jamal has been finally conferred a gold medal which she won at the 2012 London Olympic Games.
The winner of the 1500m race and the runner-up were stripped of their gold and silver medals in a doping scam.
The middle-distance runner initially won the bronze medal after finishing third in the 1500m women’s race.
Supreme Council for Youth and Sport first deputy chairman, General Sports Authority chairman and Bahrain Olympic Committee president Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa crowned Mariam who became the first Bahraini athlete to clinch an Olympic gold.
The ceremony, held at Shaikh Khalid’s majlis at Al Wadi Palace, was also attended by GSA vice chairman Shaikh Salman bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, Youth and Sports Affairs Minister Ayman Almoayed, officials and guests.
Turkey’s Asli Cakir Alptekin won gold ahead of her compatriot second-placed Gamze Bulut, while Maryam finished third in the women’s 1500m final at the Olympic Stadium in London on August 10, 2012.
The International Olympic Committee and the World Athletics governing body (IAAF) later stripped Asli and Gamze of their medals for a doping offence.
The Olympic and Bahraini anthems were also played during the ceremony which was held in compliance with the IOC regulations.
Shaikh Khalid welcomed congratulated the athlete on her Olympic title, wishing further successes in sportive career.
BOC secretary general Mohammed Hassan Al Nusuf said that Bahrain’s efforts to claim the gold medal paid off, praising Shaikh Khalid’s directives.
He said meetings were held in Greece with the IOC director of Olympic Solidarity and NOC Relations James Macleod – on the sidelines of the National Olympic Committees Congress.
The issue was also discussed again with the IAAC officials on the sidelines of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
It was then decided to confer the gold medal on Mariam years after she was declared winner of the 1500 m women’s race.
“Winning Olympic medals has a great value for countries and people. Thus we are proud of the first Olympic medal achieved by Mariam in the history of Bahrain, and the first medal for a Gulf women athlete,” he said.
&uuid=(email))