Algerian runner Djamel Sedjati has celebrated his silver medal in the 800 meters at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon by waving the Palestinian flag around the stadium.
The 23-year-old finished in a time of 1:44.14 behind Kenya’s Emmanuel Kipkurui, who took gold with 1:43.71; Marco Arop of Canada took bronze in a time of 1:44.28. Sedjati’s fellow Algerian Slimane Moula finished in fifth place.
A few more photos I got. Djamel Sedjati of Algeria waving the Palestinian flag at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon after winning the silver medal in the 800m. Cannot describe how cool this was pic.twitter.com/8nrvybSWKi
— Olivia Katbi 🌹 (@oliviakatbi) July 24, 2022
After his victory, Sedjati carried the Palestinian flag as well as the Algerian flag. He jogged around the stadium to warm applause, especially from Arab and Algerian fans.
Congrats to Algerian Djamel Sedjati, silver medalist at #WorldAthleticsChampionships2022.
Thank you for standing up for Palestinian rights.
He joins athletes using their platforms to support the Palestinian struggle for freedom, justice & equality. https://t.co/2Iqymth7rc for pic.twitter.com/uVn5pwjUzC
— PACBI (@PACBI) July 25, 2022
Sedjati won the gold medal in the Mediterranean Games hosted by Algeria earlier this year. He said that he is happy with his latest achievement, although he had hoped to take the gold medal home. “The important thing is that I won one of the three medals,” he was reported as saying by AFP. “It brought joy to the hearts of Algerians and Arabs. It was a strong race.”
This is the eleventh medal ever won by Algerian runners in the World Athletics Championships. The total medal haul is six gold, two silver, and three bronze.
(MEMO, PC, SOCIAL)
