LoveLove

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know

In its thirteenth appearance in the Paralympics, Egypt will compete at the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, Japan, from 25 August to 6 September.

Taekwondo

Taekwondo at the 2020 Summer Paralympics will be held at the Makuhari Messe, the exact location where goalballvolleyball, and wheelchair fencing will take place.

This is the first time that taekwondo will be included in the Summer Paralympic Games.

Mohamed Yasser

Mohammed Yasser (K44 M-61kg/EGY) earned a quota for Egypt for Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games after passing the African Qualification Tournament for Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games that was held in Rabat, Morocco, on Feb 24, 2020.

Salma Ali Abd Al-Moneem Hassan

The 17-year-old Egyptian girl claimed her berth in Tokyo in 2019 by winning the African qualifying championship. Salma had knocked off USA’s No. 2 Brianna Salinero on her way to a surprise silver medal in the women’s up to 58kg K44 in her first international competition.

49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020's Paralympics You Need to Know About
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About

Since winning a silver medal in the 58kg K44 division at the 2019 African Open Para-Taekwondo Championship, Salma Ali has emerged as one of the most exciting up-and-coming fighters to keep your eye on in the coming years. As Para-Taekwondo makes its debut at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Our Salma is the one to beat in her division.

Table Tennis

Ibrahim Hamato

Ibrahim Al Husseini Hamato is an Egyptian Para table tennis Champion, winning several honors over the years, including the silver medals in the African Para table tennis Championships in 2011 and 2013. Hamato lost both his arms as the result of a train accident when he was 10.

49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020's Paralympics You Need to Know About
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About

Ayman Zenaty

Ayman Zenaty ranks 26th among the world according to the ITTF Para Table Tennis Ranking.

49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020's Paralympics You Need to Know About
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About

Fayza Mahmoud

She was awarded the title of the first Arab-African woman to receive standing table tennis. In the 2004 Egyptian Open Championship, she also won two silver medals, entered the 4th round in the Olympic Games, and was the first time a player entered the golden square.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About
  • In 2003, she won two silver medals in Abuja at the African Games, and from here her international journey began.
  • And in 2005 at the World Championships for Mobility Disabilities in Brazil, she won two silver medals.
  • 2007 She won the first African qualifying tournament in Tokyo 2008, and was named the best player.
  • 2008 Slavket Open and Romania, got 4th singles and 2 bronze medals in both tournaments.
  • 2009 She participated in the African Championship Qualifying for the World Championships in South Africa, won 2 gold medals, qualified for the World Championships in Korea, and was named the best player in the world.
  • In 2009 and 2010, she finished fifth in the World Championships.
  • In 2011, she participated in Africa in the Olympic Games qualifying for the World Championships in London, and won a silver medal.
  • In 2013 and 2014, she finished fifth in the world championships in China, took a silver medal.
  • She also won the gold medal in the African Championship Qualifying Tournament for the Games in Morocco in 2015

In 2020, she won the gold medal in the Egyptian International Championships, beat China, participated in the Spanish Open, a round of 8, and beat the British champion.

Weightlifting

Fatma Omar

Fatma Omar is an Egyptian Powerlifter competing in the -56 kg category. She is a dominant power in her sport, winning gold in four Summer Paralympics and another four gold medals at the IPC Powerlifting World Championships.

She has always been fascinated by weightlifting, so she tried powerlifting.

“My father liked sports in general and encouraged me to practise sports. One time I saw athletes coming back from the 1996 Paralympic Games and this encouraged me to go to the club and do a test. I wanted to feel how powerful I could be.”

In a previous statement

She began powerlifting at age 19 in Egypt.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About

At the 2012 Paralympic Games in London, she became the first female Para powerlifter from any nation to win four Paralympic gold medals. Her gold in London also made her the second Egyptian Para-athlete and the first Egyptian female Para athlete from any sport to win four gold medals at the Paralympic Games.

Memorable sporting achievement: Winning a total of five medals [four gold and one silver] at the Paralympic Games between 2000 and 2016.

Randa Tageldin

She was born in the city of Ismailia in 1987. When she was 19 years old, she took part in the national weightlifting team at the 2006 World Championships in Korea.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About
  • In 2008, she participated in the national team in the Beijing Paralympic Games and won the silver medal in the weight of 75 kg.
  • In 2010, she participated in the World Championships in Malaysia and achieved silver in the weight of 75 kg, and in the second Paralympic participation of the Egyptian women’s bodyweight she achieved in the London Paralympic Games in 2012 silver in the weight of 82.5 kg.
  • Gold medalist in Rio de Janeiro in Paralympic weightlifting

Amany Eldesoky

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About
  • She won the gold medal in the World Paralympic Weightlifting Cup in the UAE
  • She won the bronze medal in the 73kg category at the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro
  • Amani qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics after winning the gold in the Fazza Championship in the UAE

Hany Mohsen

Hani Mohsen was born in 1980. At the beginning of his weightlifting career, he appeared distinctively. He was able to win many local championships and the Arab and African championships, which began to collect medals for those championships in 2007.

  • Hani Mohsen won first place in the Arab Games in 2007, and then a year later managed to win fourth place in the Paralympic Games held in Beijing, China in 2008.
  • Won the Gold medal in the African Championship in 2009.
  • In 2010, he won first place in the Fazza International Championship in Dubai, UAE.
  • Won first place in the World Championship in Malaysia in 2010, as well as in the Fazza International Championship in 2011.
  • Won the gold medal at the London Paralympics 2012, during which he was able to break the Paralympic record.

Taha Abd Elmeged

Taha Abdel Meguid was born in 1988.

The 33-year-old did not succumb to the crises he encountered, but he was on a regular date with challenge and perseverance to reach his prestigious place.

  • He won the gold medal in the Moroccan championship in 2009, and he also won the gold in the African Championship held in Egypt 2009.
  • He won the silver in the World Championships in Malaysia in 2010, in addition to winning the bronze medal in the Fazza Championship in the UAE in 2011.
  • He won the bronze medal in the Khorfakkan Championship in the UAE in 2011, and won the silver medal in the UAE Fazza Championship 20012
  • The personal best record he achieved in the weightlifting competitions is 172 kg, and he won the silver medal at the Paralympic Games in London 2012 after lifting 165 kg.
  • He won the gold in the Fazza Championship in the UAE 2013.

Amr Farouk

The owner of the cry of the lion or the destroyer is the name of the Egyptian champion in Paralympic weightlifting, Amr Farouk, the hero who suffered in the beginning until he reached his dream.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About

In the beginning, Amr practiced swimming for two seasons only, won 20 local medals in swimming, and then decided to retire.

In 2004, Farouk started weightlifting after retiring from Swimming. He participated in many competitions. He described weightlifting as his favorite game since his childhood.

  • He won first place in the Republic Championship in weightlifting, as he was considered the youngest weightlifter at that time.
  • He won the silver medal at the European Open Championship.
  • In 2016, he won second place in the Fazza International Championship held in the UAE, during which he broke a new African record.
  • He won the silver medal at the Paralympic Games held in the Brazilian capital, Rio de Janeiro in 2016, after carrying 235 kilograms.

President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi awarded him the Order of the Republic. His honor by the Faculty of Arts, Department of History, Cairo University, and the Misr International University honored.

Sherif Osman

Sherif Othman is an Egyptian Paralympic powerlifter competing in the -56 kg class. Othman has participated in two Summer Paralympic Games, winning gold in the -56 kg category in both. In the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing, he broke the world record with a lift of 202.5 kg.

Paralympics
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About

Sharif Othman was born on September 15, 1982, in the Minya Governorate

  • He achieved 12 gold medals in his career. Othman won his first medal in 2006, after winning the silver in the world championship.
  • He won the gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and then won the gold in the World Championships in Malaysia in 2010.
  • He participated in the 2012 London Olympics, and managed to maintain the gold medal.
  • He won the gold at the 2014 World Championships in Dubai, in addition to the gold at the Fazza International Championship in 2015.

In 2016, he engraved his name with lines of gold after setting a world record at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics and winning the gold medal after lifting the weight of 211 kg.

A year later, he won the World Championships in Mexico.

Rehab Radwan

She won the gold medal at the Dubai Championship in 2013 before winning the gold at the Fazza Championship in 2015 and 2016.

She won the silver in Rio de Janeiro and won gold at the 2017 World Championships in Mexico.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About

She won two golds in the individual and team competitions at the World Championships in Kazakhstan in 2019, while in 2018, she won the gold in the African Nations Championship in Algeria.

She Ranked first in the world in the weight of 50 kg

Amal Mahmoud

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About
  • She won the silver medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics
  • Bronze Medal in London 2012 Olympics
  • Bronze Medal in Rio de Janeiro Olympics 2016

Fatma Orani

The 20-year-old champion qualifies for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics after winning the Silver medal in the world championship held in Emirates for -61kg

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About

Athletics

Mohamed Kamal

Mohamed Kamal started his sports career by practicing weightlifting, and he has excelled in that sport since his childhood. And was able to win several local championships and participation in 3 rounds of the Paralympic Games.

Mohamed Kamal participates in athletics in the “disc throw” competitions.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know
49 Egyptian Players in Tokyo 2020’s Paralympics You Need to Know About

The International Association of Athletics Federations ranked Muhammad Kamal among the top 5 athletes in athletics in discus throwing competitions.

  • He won the bronze medal in the shot put at the Fazza Grand Prix in the UAE.

Mohamed Kamal has been in a camp for a year and a half, where he trains 5 days each week in preparation for his participation in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.

Badminton

Ahmed Aldekrory

El-Dakroury is the first Egyptian, Arab and African player to qualify for the Paralympic Games in badminton competitions.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know

Egypt participates in badminton with only one player, Ahmed El-Dakrouri, as no one but El-Dakrouri qualified in the competitions of that game.

Swimming

Youssef Mohamed

He was crowned with more than 100 local medals and won more than 12 medals in international tournaments, including silver and bronze medals.

Youssef Mohamed is the holder of the African record registered in the Paralympic swimming competitions in the 50m race and the 200m freestyle, 150m medley, and 50m breaststroke.

He finished eighth in the World Championships in Mexico after breaking the African record for the race in the qualifying and in the final with a time of 1:03.62 minutes.

Aya Ayman

Ayman was born with a problem that prevented her from walking, and the wheelchair remained her companion.

Doctors used water as a kind of medical tourism for the Egyptian hero, and swimming turned from a mere treatment to a hobby in which she excelled until she made many achievements.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know

She actually started swimming in 2006 at Al Shams Club at the age of six, before joining the Egyptian national swimming team in 2014 as the youngest Paralympic swimmer.

She won the first international gold medal at the Spain International Championship in 2014 and gold and silver at the 2015 Poland International Championship.

She is the first and youngest player to participate in the 2016 Rio Paralympics and the first and youngest girl in swimming history to win the silver and bronze medals at the world championships.

President Sisi honored her in his meeting with the athletes and awarded her.

Malak Abdelshafi

Malak suffered severe spinal cord injuries because of an accident at 10 months that left her paralyzed. Part of her treatment after the accident was hydrotherapy, because of which she loved swimming. She joined the national team in 2014 and has won many championships since then.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know

Malak won 39 national medals and 6 international ones. In 2018, she won the second world junior title in Ireland and topped the world ranks for short-distance swimming.

She participated in London Paralympics.

Zeiad Kahil

A 20 years old business management student made Paralympic swimmer. Zeiad’s case was a difficult first in the family, but all the doctors pointed towards the water, so Ziad dived right in.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know

Water was the prescribed medication for Zeiad, one to help support his case. Swimming was challenging at first. It was tough for him to float and even swim since his lower body lost all motion. The first turning point is when Zeiad made it successfully to a 50 meters swim! After that, he started stepwise learning and applying different techniques and progressively improving.

In 2013, Zeiad joined the Paralympic championship in Egypt for the first time, and 4 years after, in 2017, he joined the national team! In 2017, the head coaches and the judges agreed that Zeiad is an excellent swimmer with the potential to succeed.

Volleyball

The Reo 2016 Silver Medalists qualifies for Tokyo 2020 Paralympics after winning the Men’s ParaVolley Africa Sitting Volleyball Championships.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know

Team members: Hesham Alshoekh, Abdelnaby Abdellatif, Hossam Masoud, Ahmed Abdelgel, Mohamed Abo Alyazed, Mohamed Abdelmoty, Ahmed Khamis, Ashraf Zaghlol, Salah Atta, Motawea Abdelbaky, Ahmed Abdel Fatah, and Elsayed Moussa.

Women’s Goal Ball

Goalball is a Paralympic sport designed for visually impaired players, where they use their hands to throw a ball that has a bell embedded within. Initially, the Egyptian team hadn’t been selected for the Paralympics since it came in second place after the Algerian national team during the International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) African Championships. But after the Algerian team backed out of the Paralympic Games, our national team is back in the game, where they will compete alongside defending champions Turkey, Russia, and host nation Japan, among others.

This would be the first time the women’s goalball team has qualified for the Paralympics.

Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics: 49 Amazing Egyptian Athletes You Need to Know

Team members: Esraa Gad Karim. Esraa Ezzedine, Jihad Ezzedine, Hasna Al Jabri, Aya Abdullah, and Hanan Mustafa Ibrahim

    What do you think?

    Avatar

    Written by Omar Bakry

    Leave a Reply

    Avatar

        One-on-One with the Promising Writer Ahmed Hosny

        One-on-One with the Promising Writer Ahmed Hosny

        AB Accelerator: Arab Bank Launches its FinTech Accelerating Program in Egypt

        AB Accelerator: Arab Bank Launches its FinTech Accelerating Program in Egypt