Her sinews stretched above the neckline of a long-sleeved training top, 20-year-old Egyptian Sara Samir propels a barbell carrying more than 90 kilos above her head, before the weights smash back to earth.
Even before this impressive lift, it’s clear Samir has a commanding presence in the national team’s weightlifting hall in Cairo.
She has become something of a trendsetter since winning bronze in the 69kg class at the 2016 Olympic Games — the first female Egyptian Olympian to be presented with a medal on the podium.
“After I won the medal in Rio, girls started weightlifting in a big way in Ismailiya,” she said with a beaming smile, referring to her home province.
But it wasn’t always like that for Samir, who competes under the name “Sara Ahmed.”
“People would tell me things like ‘Oh, you weightlift? Can you carry me?’” she said of her experience aged 11, when she first began training.
On the back of her Olympic success, the number of girls competing seriously in weightlifting has surged nearly tenfold.
“Female participants in weightlifting championships were no more than 30 or 40 girls,” said Mohamed Eldib, head coach of the national weightlifting team, after he supervised Samir and her peers in the southern Cairo district of Maadi.
Now more than 300 girls are registered with the Egyptian Weightlifting Federation, he said.
“Winning forms a strong motivation for female athletes ... and gives hope in the possibility of accomplishing wins, whatever the difficulties,” sports analyst Mohamed Seif told AFP.
The challenges include a “lack of interest of the family which cares first about the boy” since girls are expected to stop practicing sport when they get married, Seif said.
Girls are encouraged to take part in other sports such as swimming or gymnastics, he said, rather than weightlifting or athletics.
Before Samir’s bronze, Egypt had not won a single weightlifting medal since 1948 — a drought of nearly 70 years.
Her triumph was followed the same day by another bronze won by male weightlifter Mohamed Mahmoud.
Samir is completely absorbed by her training. “Her whole mind is weightlifting,” said her coach proudly.
She has also benefited from supportive parents — as a girl, it was Samir’s father who accepted her wish to start weightlifting and took her to training.
Months later, she won a gold medal in Egypt’s national championships in the under-14 age group. At just 13, she joined the national team.
But Samir is not the only Egyptian woman to have made it big on the world weightlifting stage.
Years after competing, compatriot Abeer Abdelrahman is due to be handed Olympic medals retroactively, after podium winners were stripped of their medals due to testing positive for doping.
Abdelrahman had originally come fifth in both the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and the 2012 Olympics in London.
In 2016, she was informed she had won a silver medal in London, and a few months later that she would be awarded a bronze medal for Beijing.
And last year, Shaimaa Khalaf, 26, won silver and bronze at the US World Championships in the +90kg weight category.
But despite such major successes, weightlifting and other sports are not the government’s top priority — a spot reserved for football in Egypt.
“The state usually reacts at the moment of the accomplishment ... and then as time passes we forget and focus on football,” said Seif.
Eldib said that while state funding covers the national team’s needs, the lack of funding for gyms limits potential champions because many people do not have access to weightlifting training.
All of Samir’s medals since she began competing — more than 50, she said — are gold, except for two bronze, including the Rio Olympic medal.
Her secret?
“It all depends on how much you want to achieve,” she said, echoing her coach Eldib, who believes girls “have higher levels of tolerance in training than boys.”
Egyptian weightlifter Sara Samir raises the bar for women
Egyptian weightlifter Sara Samir raises the bar for women
- She became the first Egyptian Olympian to be presented with a medal on the podium
- Number of girls competing seriously in weightlifting has surged nearly tenfold
Barca shred Valencia to restore La Liga shine
BARCELONA: Barcelona blew away a miserable Valencia 7-1 on Sunday to get back on track in La Liga with a ruthless victory.
Fermin Lopez struck twice for the Catalans in the first half, along with goals from Frenkie de Jong, Ferran Torres and Raphinha which gave Barcelona a commanding five-goal lead at the break.
Hugo Duro pulled one back early in the second half before Robert Lewandowski pounced for Barca, followed by a Cesar Tarrega own goal, with the third-placed hosts earning just their second win in their last nine league matches.
Hansi Flick’s side trail La Liga leaders Real Madrid by seven points and second-placed Atletico Madrid by three.
Flick shuffled his pack against Valencia in order to spark a response given the club’s poor domestic form.
The coach began with Lewandowski and Ronald Araujo on the bench, while Pedri was absent because of a stomach bug, leading to De Jong, Ferran Torres and the superb Lopez all starting.
It took just three minutes for De Jong to open the scoring, with teenage star Lamine Yamal crossing for him in the area virtually unmarked, and he fired home.
Barcelona soon had their second, with Torres tucking home from Alejandro Balde’s cross, in similar fashion to the first goal but from the opposite flank.
The hosts moved three goals ahead in the 14th minute when Lopez clipped a fine ball over the top for Raphinha to run onto.
The Brazilian winger rounded Giorgi Mamardashvili and rolled home for his 12th league goal of the season.
Valencia, without the suspended Cristhian Mosquera, were struggling badly in defense and Barcelona broke in seemingly at will.
Lopez collected a perfectly measured Pau Cubarsi long pass for the fourth and although it was initially ruled offside, the decision was corrected by VAR.
Valencia thought they had won a penalty when Wojciech Szczesny brought down Hugo Duro but play was eventually brought back for a foul on Jules Kounde after another video review.
Lopez rattled home the fifth on the volley before half-time when Raphinha’s effort hit the post and fell nicely for him with the goalkeeper stranded.
Hugo Duro pulled one back for Valencia early in the second half from Diego Lopez’s low cross and Flick responded by sending on La Liga’s top goalscorer Lewandowski.
The Polish forward finished clinically for his 17th league goal of the season after being sent through by Lopez for Barca’s sixth on the night.
Barcelona netted their seventh when Torres’s hammered cross was deflected into his own net by Tarrega.
Seven goals did not flatter Barcelona by any means and the thrashing is a setback for Carlos Corberan’s Valencia, 19th and four points from safety.
Earlier Athletic Bilbao, fourth, could only produce a 0-0 draw at home against Leganes, and now trail Barcelona by two points.
Relegation-battling Getafe earned an impressive 3-0 win at Real Sociedad to climb to 14th, while Rayo Vallecano came from behind to beat Girona 2-1.
Ronaldo on target again as Al-Nassr win to go 3rd in Saudi Pro League
- Late strike lifts Portuguese star’s goal tally to 14 — and saves goalkeeper’s blushes
RIYADH: Cristiano Ronaldo’s fine goalscoring form continued in the Saudi Pro League on Sunday as he helped Al-Nassr defeat Al-Fateh 3-1 to move back into third place.
A late strike made it three goals in two games for the five-time Ballon d’Or winner as he moved clear at the top of the goalscoring standings with 14 for the season so far.
The deadlock was only broken four minutes before the break when Marwane Saadane put into his own net from close range after Angelo drove a low ball across the face of goal. Angelo was the provider of the second just before the hour, swinging over a free-kick for French defender Mohamed Simakan to head home his first goal for Al-Nassr.
At 2-0 the game seemed done and dusted, but with 18 minutes remaining, Al-Fateh, in last place in the standings, reduced the arrears thanks to Mourad Batna, who pounced after goalkeeper Bento spent too long on the ball inside his own area and was caught in possession.
Ronaldo spared Bento’s blushes with three minutes of normal time remaining, just as the visitors were threatening to take a surprising point.
It was so simple. Sadio Mane broke free down the left, passed to the far post, and there was the Portuguese star to sweep home with the minimum of fuss.
Ronaldo had the ball in the back of the net once more deep into injury time, smashing home spectacularly from the right side of the area, only for the strike to be ruled out for offside.
Al-Nassr now have 35 points from 17 games, eight behind Al-Hilal and Al-Ittihad, who have a game in hand.
Earlier in the day, Al-Ahli made it seven wins from the last eight in the league with a 5-0 thrashing of Al-Riyadh.
Two goals from England striker Ivan Toney and one each from Roberto Firmino, Riyad Mahrez, and Ziyad Al-Johani made the difference as the Jeddah club stay in fifth, three points behind Al-Nassr.
Jannik Sinner beats Alexander Zverev in 3 sets for his second Australian Open title in a row
- Jannik Sinner is the youngest man to leave Melbourne Park with the trophy two years in a row since Jim Courier in 1992-1993
MELBOURNE: Jannik Sinner claimed his second consecutive Australian Open championship on Sunday, never facing a single break point and using his complete game to outplay and frustrate Alexander Zverev for a 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-3 victory in the final.
Sinner, a 23-year-old Italian, is the youngest man to leave Melbourne Park with the trophy two years in a row since Jim Courier in 1992-93.
Sinner rose to No. 1 last June, remaining there for every week since, and the gap between him and No. 2-ranked Zverev was pronounced as can be in Rod Laver Arena. This was the first Australian Open final between the men at No. 1 and No. 2 since 2019, when No. 1 Novak Djokovic defeated No. 2 Rafael Nadal – also in straight sets.
Here’s how dominant Sinner has been since the start of last season: He has won three of the five major tournaments, including the US Open in September, and his record in that span is 80-6 with a total of nine tournament titles. His current unbeaten run covers 21 matches, dating to last year.
The only thing that’s clouded the past 12 months for Sinner, it seems, is a doping case in which he was cleared by a ruling that was appealed by the World Anti-Doping Agency. He tested positive for a trace amount of an anabolic steroid twice last March but blamed it on an accidental exposure involving two members of his team who have since been fired. Sinner initially was exonerated in August; a hearing in the WADA appeal is scheduled for April.
While Sinner became the eighth man in the Open era (which began in 1968) to start his career 3-0 in Grand Slam finals, Zverev is the seventh to be 0-3, adding this loss to those at the 2020 US Open and the 2024 French Open.
Those earlier setbacks both came in five sets. This contest was not that close. Not at all.
There truly was only one moment that felt as if it contained a hint of tension. It was late in the second set, which Zverev was two points from owning when he led 5-4 and got to love-30 on Sinner’s serve. But a break point – and a set point – never arrived there.
Zverev not got closer, dropping the next four points, making it 5-all. Sinner then emerged with the ensuing tiebreaker. No surprise there: He went 4-0 in those set-deciders over the past two weeks and has grabbed 16 of his past 18.
A year ago, Sinner went through a lot more trouble to earn his first Slam, needing to get past Novak Djokovic – who quit one set into his semifinal against Zverev on Friday because of a torn hamstring – first, before erasing a two-set deficit in the final against 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev.
Beating Zverev allowed Sinner to become the first man since Nadal at the French Open in 2005 and 2006 to follow up his first Grand Slam title by repeating as the champion at the same tournament a year later.
Usman Nurmagomedov retains Bellator lightweight world title after epic win over Paul Hughes
- Defending champion says he would welcome a rematch in Belfast
DUBAI: Usman Nurmagomedov beat Paul Hughes on Saturday night to retain his Bellator lightweight world title at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai.
The main event at the PFL Road to Dubai Champions Series produced a 25-minute battle between the prides of Dagestan and Northern Ireland, with Nurmagomedov staying unbeaten after receiving the nod from two of the three judges sitting outside the SmartCage (47-47, 48-46, 48-46). After the majority decision win, Nurmagomedov had nothing but respect for his opponent.
“This is for you guys, Paul Hughes, you are the man, brother you’re tough, I underestimated this guy,” Nurmagomedov said. “But I’m still undefeated, undisputed Bellator lightweight champion.”
Hughes also made it clear he would love a rematch in Belfast.
“It played out how I expected, I’m so gutted and disappointed I lost. I thought I won the fight, I probably left some in the tank, I need to leave everything behind next time. I really thought I was going to win,” Hughes said. “The PFL believed in me and I believe in the PFL. We have to do the rematch in Belfast, it has to be in Belfast, I think I’ve earned this.”
The PFL Road to Dubai Champions Series is the inaugural “Road to Dubai” event after the signing of a groundbreaking multi-year partnership between the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, Dubai Sports Council and the Professional Fighters League.
The first-of-its-kind partnership will allow MMA world champions and the sport’s biggest stars from the PFL to compete in title fights as Dubai becomes a marquee destination for the best of MMA.
All other Champions Series events will now be co-branded as “Road to Dubai” events, with each show building to the finale, set in the new fight capital. As part of the PFL’s commitment to developing the sport of MMA in Dubai, rising Emirati star fighters will now have a pathway to become future PFL champions.
In the heavyweight co-main event of the evening, former Bellator light heavyweight world champion Vadim Nemkov (19-2) made quick work of Tim Johnson (18-11), needing only 3:08 to submit the former Minnesota National Guardsman. Originally scheduled to face Corey Anderson in a rematch, Johnson took the bout on short notice and brought the fight to Nemkov, but a rear-naked choke brought the bout to an end. Nemkov now has 14 straight wins under his belt.
Dagestan’s Akhmed Magomedov (11-1) submitted Ireland’s Nathan Kelly (11-3) via rear-naked choke in Round 2 in a featherweight main card bout on Saturday. Magomedov, who had not fought in almost two years, quickly shook off any rust. With the win, Dagestan moved to 2-0 against Ireland with the main event remaining.
England’s Ibragim Ibragimov improved to 9-0 after a unanimous decision victory (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) against Kenny Mokhonoana (5-2). Ibragimov’s third win under the PFL banner shows that he is not only one of the best rising prospects on the European MMA scene, but globally as well.
The opening main card bout of the PFL Road to Dubai Champions Series featured Russia’s Renat Khavalov (9-0) against Brazil’s Cleiver Fernandes (9-2) at bantamweight. With Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov in his corner, Khavalov cruised to a unanimous (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) decision in his PFL debut.
Preliminary card results
Ahmed Samy (12-4) beat Tarek Suleiman (13-9) via TKO at 5:00 in Round 1
Mirafzal Akhtamov (8-0-1) beat Mike Thompson (7-3) via technical submission (head and arm choke) at 2:50 of Round 2
Hadi Omar Al Hussaini (6-1-1) beat Ruel Panales (5-3) via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
John Mitchell (10-2) beat Souhil Tairi (7-6-1) via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Haider Khan (9-1) beat Mostafa Nada (9-4) via TKO at 3:18 of Round 1
Talal Alqallaf (3-0 AM.) beat Saeed Alhosani (4-3 AM.) via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-27)
LIV Golf set for first-ever night event at 2025 season opener in Riyadh
- After three years of hosting the event in Jeddah, LIV Golf will debut at Riyadh Golf Club from Feb. 6-8
- Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Jon Rahm, Phil Mickelson, and many of golf’s biggest stars set to compete
RIYADH: Following three years of hosting events at the Royal Greens Golf and Country Club near Jeddah, LIV Golf will make its debut this season at the Riyadh Golf Club from Feb. 6-8 in what will be its first-ever night event.
The event will feature a strong line-up of players including LIV Golf 2024 individual champion Jon Rahm (Legion XIII), LIV Golf Jeddah 2024 winner Joaquin Niemann (Torque GC), as well as international golfing stars such as World Golf Hall of Famer Phil Mickelson (HyFlyers GC), five-time major winner Brooks Koepka (Smash GC), 2024 US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau (Crushers GC), and many more.
Ross Hallett, LIV Golf executive vice president and head of events, shared his excitement, saying, “LIV Golf Riyadh is going to be a can’t-miss event featuring world-class competition and entertainment for fans of all ages. Hosting the tournament at night is another example of our commitment to innovation and presenting new ways to enjoy the sport at its highest level.
“We encourage all fans to arrive early to enjoy the fan village, food festival, fun fair and on-course treasure hunt amongst the many family activities happening around the golf course as we deliver an unforgettable experience at Riyadh Golf Club starting on the 6th of February,” he added.
The 2025 season opener will also mark the debut of Lee Cheih-po, winner of the LIV Golf Promotions 2024 event at Riyadh Golf Club. The Chinese-Taipei star secured the sole spot to join the league’s prestigious 54-player field after a thrilling final day at the Riyadh Golf Club in December.
