Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
Damascus, SANA- the Syrian woman was among the first who practiced cycling in the Arab World.
In 1986, just 10 women participated in this sport championship and in the 1990s about 80 women took part, yet, this sport nowadays experiences a noticeable development, especially in Syria.
The cycling is one of the distinguished sports in Syria which has witnessed remarkable presence on the Asian level, coming in the first positions in most championships.
Former Head of the Syrian Cycling Union and adviser to the Arab cycling Federation, Abdul Fattah Beitmani said that Syrian women were the first in the Arab World who excelled in this sport as they had advanced positions in the championships organized in Arab states, pointing out that the Syrian cyclist Katherine Barsah won tournament at the 7th Arab session held in 1992.
Beitmani asserted that cycling is an important sport because it has large benefits on health and it is an environment-friendly form of transport.
He pointed out that Cycling sport started in a number of foreign countries, on top, France, Holland, Belgium and US followed by China, then moving to the Arab states where Syria was the first that paid a great interest in.
Reem/Mazen
