Qualification for the London Olympics was the goal in Bled as Haider's new European coach stressed: "I know he will not be Olympic champion, he will not be in the final. If he is then in London my mission is accomplished," said Andreas Leichtfuss.
Wed 10 Aug 11: Hamza's wife has given birth to a girl named Zahra. Haider, meanwhile, is in his last year at the College of Sport in Baghdad.
Fri 19 Nov 10: Haider Rashid has won Iraq's first medal of the Asian Games.
Haider Rashid celebrates his bronze medal at the Asian Games
He won bronze in the men's single sculls event, finishing some five seconds behind gold medalist Bajran Takhar of India.
"I'm so happy and excited because this is the first medal for Iraq at the Asian Games. This achievement will encourage young people in Iraq," Rashid said.
Thu 18 Nov 10: Hamza Hussein was part of the Iraqi men's four team that came fifth at the Asian Games in Guangzhou, China.
Sun 24 Oct 10: Haider Rashid and Hamza Hussein plus other athletes from Iraq's national rowing team competed in the prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston.
Rashid finished 15th in the Championships singles race and the Iraqi team came 10th in the lightweight fours.
They will now travel to Guangzhou, China to compete in the Asian Games.
"We come here just for sports," Haider Rashid said. "It's just sports for us. We teach them some rowing and some sport, we had fun with them."
Thu 23 Sep 10: Iraq's rowing team have landed in Boston, USA to train with the US national team ahead of the Asian Games in November.
The team were brought to the US by a group of supporters including the largest non-profit rowing organization in the world, Community Rowing Inc. and the Head of the Charles Regatta.
"We are pleased to co-host the Iraqi athletes and wish them every success on race day," said Frederick V. Schoch, executive director of the Head of the Charles Regatta.
Fri 06 Aug10: The Iraqi rowing team are planning to spend three months training in the U.S. and could compete in two of the best-known races there. Read the article at Cincinnati Magazine for further details.
E-mail this to a friend 
Printable version 
Bookmark with:
What are these?