From Sara Samir to Dunya Aboutaleb: Five Arab women to watch at the Paris Olympics

Five Arab women to look out for at the Paris Olympics, from left to right: Sara Samir, Kaylia Nemour, Dunya Aboutaleb, Ray Bassil and Fatima Ezzahra Gardadi. (Screesnhot/X/Instagram)
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Updated 26 July 2024
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From Sara Samir to Dunya Aboutaleb: Five Arab women to watch at the Paris Olympics

  • Four women representing Arab countries managed to scoop medals in Tokyo 2020

PARIS: The Paris 2024 Olympics are just around the corner and there is plenty to look forward to when it comes to Arab athletes at these games.

Four women representing Arab countries managed to scoop medals in Tokyo 2020 — the Egyptian trio Feryal Abdelaziz (karate gold), Hedaya Malak (taekwondo bronze) and Giana Farouk (karate bronze), along with Kalkidan Gezahegne of Bahrain (athletics silver) — and there could be more in store in Paris.

Here are five Arab women to look out for at these Olympic Games:

Sara Samir (Egypt) — Weightlifting

Weightlifter Sara Samir etched her name in the history books when she clinched bronze in the 69kg event at the Rio 2016 Olympics, to become Egypt’s first-ever female medalist. She was just 18 at the time, and had to skip her high school exams in order to compete.

A gold medalist at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships in the -76kg weight class, Samir heads to Paris as a strong medal contender in the ultra-competitive 81kg event, where she will be looking to challenge the likes of Tokyo Olympics -76kg gold medalist Neisi Dajomes of Ecuador, Norway’s Solfrid Koanda, and Australia’s Eileen Cikamatana.

The 26-year-old Samir has been selected as one of two flagbearers for Egypt in the opening ceremony — alongside modern pentathlete Olympic silver medalist Ahmed Elgendy — and is targeting the top step on the podium in Paris, after being forced to miss the Tokyo 2020 Olympics due to the suspension of her country’s weightlifting federation.

“I’m undergoing rigorous training for Paris. I'm technically and physically prepared to compete. My goal is to win gold despite the strong competition. I won’t give up on my dream, no matter what,” Samir told AFP.

Samir’s weightlifting competition in Paris will take place on Aug. 10.

Kaylia Nemour (Algeria) — Artistic gymnastics

At 17 years of age, Kaylia Nemour is already a history-maker.

With a stunning uneven bars routine that draws gasps anytime she performs it, Nemour became the first gymnast representing an African country to clinch a medal at a World Championships when she snatched silver on her signature apparatus in Antwerp last fall.

The France-born Algerian kept up her form this year, sweeping gold in three of the four World Cup events (in Cottbus, Baku, and Doha), and heads to her first Olympics as the favorite for the uneven bars title.

Should she make the podium in Paris, she would become the first African or Arab gymnast to secure an Olympic medal in gymnastics.

“It’s beautiful what she does,” the reigning Olympic uneven bars champion, Nina Derwael, was quoted as saying by sporza.be. “I don’t think anyone will take the gold from her in Paris.”

Women’s qualification in artistic gymnastics commences in Paris on July 28 with the uneven bars final scheduled for Aug. 4.

Dunya Aboutaleb (Saudi Arabia) — Taekwondo

The first Saudi Arabian woman to qualify outright for the Olympics — without the need of a special invitation or wildcard — is looking to further cement her name in the history books by making the podium in the -49kg taekwondo event in Paris this summer.

Dunya Aboutaleb exploded onto the scene when she clinched bronze at the World Taekwondo Championships in Guadalajara in 2022.

She grew up training with boys because there were no girls training in taekwondo in Saudi Arabia and used to cover her hair with a scarf or a hat to blend in with the opposite gender.

Now aged 27 and coached by Kurban Bogdaev, who helped guide Tunisia’s Mohamed Khalil Jendoubi to a silver medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Aboutaleb has high hopes for Paris.

“As the first Saudi woman to qualify for the Olympics, I have reached the stage of kill or be killed,” Aboutaleb told AFP. “I have reached a place where I must achieve something.”

Aboutaleb’s -49kg competition at the Olympics will take place on Aug. 7.

Ray Bassil (Lebanon) — Shooting

A former world No.1 trap shooter and the reigning Asian champion, Ray Bassil is heading to her fourth Olympics this month with her eyes fixed firmly on the podium.

The 35-year-old Bassil took gold at the World Cup in Baku two months ago, which was a welcome boost to her confidence ahead of the action in Paris.

“For me, it is special because it’s bringing back a lot of confidence. And just to assess my whole training from the beginning of the year until today. I’m super happy that my work is paying off,” she said in an interview with the International Shooting Sport Federation.

“I really hope it’s going to be a good kick-off for the Olympics. It’s just a step forward.”

Women’s trap qualification at the Olympics begins on July 30.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Ray Bassil (@rayjbassil)

Fatima Ezzahra Gardadi (Morocco) — Athletics

The fast rise of Fatima Ezzahra Gardadi in the marathon world has been nothing short of remarkable.

The 32-year-old Moroccan was originally a runner over the 5 kilometer, 10 kilometer and half-marathon distances but switched to the full marathon in 2019.

She won her debut marathon in Marrakesh in 2022, smashing the course record along the way.

Gardadi then made history at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest last year by clinching bronze to become the first Moroccan or Arab woman to win a World Championship medal in the marathon. That secured her qualification for the Paris Olympics.

This year, Gardadi has not slowed down. She ran a personal-best of 2:24:12 at the Xiamen Marathon in China in January before placing eighth with a 2:24:53 amongst an elite field at the prestigious Boston marathon in April.

Gardadi will be making her Olympics debut in Paris, where she hopes to become Morocco’s first female medalist since 2008.

The women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics is scheduled for Aug. 11.

 

 


Paul Waring shoots 61 in Abu Dhabi to set 36-hole record on European tour with 19-under par

Updated 08 November 2024
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Paul Waring shoots 61 in Abu Dhabi to set 36-hole record on European tour with 19-under par

ABU DHABI: Paul Waring hit the shot of his life to complete a career-low 11-under 61 in the second round of the Abu Dhabi Championship on Friday and establish a five-stroke lead heading into the weekend of the European tour’s first playoff event.
The No. 229-ranked Englishman hit a draw with a 3-wood from about 260 yards to inside 4 feet at No. 18 and tapped in the birdie putt to move to 19-under par for the tournament.
The European tour confirmed to The Associated Press that it is the lowest 36-hole score to par in the tour’s history.
Waring, who opened with a 64 on Thursday, made nine birdies and an eagle in a bogey-free round at Yas Links and set a course record.
“I’ve got a nice lead at the moment but even before I tee off tomorrow, someone might have caught me,” said the 39-year-old Waring, whose sole win came at the Nordea Masters in 2018. “While I’m in the lead at the moment, and if we are rational about this, everyone is still going to fire a lot of
birdies in there.

Paul Waring. (AFP/File)


“So if I’m going to be involved on Sunday afternoon, I’ve still got to keep going the way I am and I know that.”
First-round leader Tommy Fleetwood of England (68), Johannes Veerman of the United States (67) and Danish players Niklas Norgaard (65) and Thorbjorn Olesen (67) were tied for second place on 14 under.
Rory McIlroy hit his tee shot into a greenside bunker at the par-3 17th and made a triple bogey on the way to a second successive 67, leaving him nine strokes off the lead.
McIlroy, who can clinch a sixth Race to Dubai title with a win this week, was 7 under after 13 holes of his second round and feels he’ll need to produce something similar to reel in Waring and his closest chasers.
“I need the golf course to firm up a little bit and toughen up a little bit to have a chance,” McIlroy said. “There’s so many gettable holes out there.”


Zheng advances to WTA Finals championship match with semifinal win over Krejcikova

Updated 08 November 2024
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Zheng advances to WTA Finals championship match with semifinal win over Krejcikova

  • Zheng, 22, awaits top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka or third-seeded Coco Gauff in the final on Saturday

RIYADH: Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen became the first tournament debutante to reach the championship match at the WTA Finals since 2021 with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Barbora Krejcikova in Riyadh on Friday.

The seventh-seeded Zheng needed one hour and 40 minutes to overcome the Wimbledon champion in their semifinal encounter, firing nine aces along the way.
Zheng led 6-3, 3-0 before the eighth-seeded Krejcikova launched a comeback attempt but the Chinese star regained control of the match to make it two wins from two clashes with the Czech.
Zheng, 22, awaits top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka or third-seeded Coco Gauff in the final on Saturday, as she bids to become the first player to win the WTA Finals on her maiden appearance since Ashleigh Barty in 2019.
“It feels so special because this is my first WTA Finals and right now I’m in the final, which is unbelievable. She’s a really good player, today we gave a good match,” said Zheng.
“It was tricky because at 3-0 I think I dropped my performance; suddenly my performance went down, and she played more free and I was suddenly 3-4 down. I gave so much control to myself to not panic too much. It shows I was mentally strong in that moment.”
Zheng was near untouchable on serve in the 40-minute opening set, dropping just one point behind her first delivery en route to a 6-3 lead.
The Olympic champion broke twice for a 3-0 advantage in the second set and looked on her way to a comfortable victory.
But Krejcikova had other ideas and she halted Zheng’s momentum by attacking her second serve to grab the next four games and inch ahead for the first time in the contest.
It became a tug of war but it was Zheng who found an opening, breaking in game 12 to put herself in the position to serve for the match.
The fight wasn’t over yet as Zheng had to save a break point and saw a first match point slip away before she wrapped up the win on her second chance when a Krejcikova forehand sailed wide.
Since the event’s inauguration in 1972, Zheng is only the second Asian player to reach the decider at the WTA Finals after Li Na pulled off that feat in 2013.


PSG to curb political slogans in wake of ‘Free Palestine’ banner

Updated 08 November 2024
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PSG to curb political slogans in wake of ‘Free Palestine’ banner

  • PSG promised to “guarantee the absence of political messages” in the stands
  • “The club was not aware of the plan to display such a message“

PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain say they will make sure there is no repeat of a midweek unfurling by fans of a banner proclaiming “Free Palestine.”
The huge banner covered an entire section of the stadium at the Parc des Princes Wednesday night ahead of PSG’s defeat at the hands of Atletico Madrid.
As well as the slogan “Free Palestine,” the banner showed a bloodstained Palestinian flag, a gesticulating man with a keffiyeh scarf covering all his face except his eyes, the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem and a young boy wrapped in the Lebanese flag.
On Friday, after a meeting with the French football federation and government officials, PSG promised to “guarantee the absence of political messages” in the stands.
“A frank and constructive dialogue made it possible to identify solutions that PSG is committed to putting in place from the next match at the Parc des Princes,” a government spokesperson told AFP.
The banner, which was unfurled by the Paris Ultras Collective (CUP) hard-core fan group, was shown above another slogan which read: “War on the pitch but peace in the world.”
“The club was not aware of the plan to display such a message,” PSG said in a statement Wednesday evening.


Al-Hilal win again to pile pressure on Gerrard at Al-Ettifaq

Updated 08 November 2024
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Al-Hilal win again to pile pressure on Gerrard at Al-Ettifaq

  • Three fine goals from Aleksandar Mitrovic, Malcom and Mohammed Al-Qahtani did the damage

RIYADH: Al-Hilal returned to the top of the Saudi Pro League on Friday, defeating Ettifaq 3-1 to rack up the pressure on under-fire coach Steven Gerrard.

Three fine goals from Aleksandar Mitrovic, Malcom and Mohammed Al-Qahtani did the damage as the champions moved a point clear of Al-Ittihad, who won 2–0 at Al-Orubah on Thursday. 

The loss means that Ettifaq, who started the season with three straight wins, have taken just one point from the last six games in the league. It may mean a nervous international break for Gerrard, though the Liverpool legend will know that this was a battling performance from his players, who just did not quite have the quality when needed.

While Ettifaq tried to keep it tight at the back, it was not all one-way traffic. Moussa Dembele had a couple of opportunities when the ball simply wouldn’t fall for him and Karl Toko-Ekambi shot just over from the left side, though it could have been a mishit cross.

All know, however, that you have to be ruthless and clinical when playing the 19-time Saudi champions as wastefulness is almost always punished. It took the Blues some time to get going but they started to look ominous as half-time approached.

Just before the break, Al-Hilal should have taken the lead. This season Mitrovic has been lethal inside the area and the league’s leading scorer was picked out in space near the penalty spot; the stadium held its breath but former Fulham teammate Marek Rodak got his foot to the low shot and Malcom fired the rebound wide.

Mitrovic didn’t miss in added time. Renan Lodi picked up possession on the left and the Brazilian then bent a beautiful low cross behind the Ettifaq defense and Mitrovic could not miss from inside the six-yard box for his 11th of the season.

Ettifaq were still very much in the game and ten minutes after the restart, Toko-Ekambi stretched for a low cross, and while the Cameroonian did make contact and forced a good save from Yassine Bounou, it was a great chance.

The easterners thought they were going to regret that as Mitrovic had the ball in the net once more but his close-range header was ruled out for offside. There was a lengthy VAR review but it only confirmed the referee’s original decision.

The second goal did come eventually, and when it did — in the 81st minute — it was one to remember, for the home fans at least. Malcolm was running in from the left side of the area when he was found by a smart backheel from Abdullah Al-Hamdan. The Brazilian then took the ball past the goalkeeper with his first touch and then rolled the ball home.

It seemed that there was no coming back from that — Hilal are not a team that gives up two-goal leads — but as injury time started, Ettifaq were handed a lifeline in the shape of a penalty, and up stepped Vitinho to place the ball into the bottom corner.

Unfortunately for the visitors, it served just to wake up the hosts, who quickly restored their two-goal lead, though Gerrard angrily told officials that Mitrovic had committed a foul in the build-up. The home fans enjoyed the goal, however, as Malcom fed Mohammed Al-Qahtani who turned 360 degrees to make a little space in the area and then fired a low shot home.

It got even worse for Ettifaq as Abdullah Radif was sent off for shoving Ali Al-Bulaihi in the neck. There really was no coming back from that.

All in all, it was a perfect evening’s work for Al-Hilal, even if Saudi Arabia coach Herve Renard will be a little concerned that star man Salem Al-Dawsari seemed to pick up an injury — with the trip to Australia for a vital World Cup qualifier next Thursday.

Elsewhere, Al-Ahli bounced back from their defeat in the Jeddah Derby to defeat Al-Raed 2-0.


Paul Waring shoots 61 in Abu Dhabi to set 36-hole record on European tour with 19-under par

Updated 08 November 2024
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Paul Waring shoots 61 in Abu Dhabi to set 36-hole record on European tour with 19-under par

  • Waring, who opened with a 64 on Thursday, made nine birdies and an eagle in a bogey-free round at Yas Links
  • Rory McIlroy made a triple bogey on No. 17 in his second successive 67

ABU DHABI: Paul Waring hit the shot of his life to complete a career-low 11-under 61 in the second round of the Abu Dhabi Championship on Friday and establish a five-stroke lead heading into the weekend of the European tour’s first playoff event.
The No. 229-ranked Englishman hit a draw with a 3-wood from about 260 yards to inside 4 feet at No. 18 and tapped in the birdie putt to move to 19-under par for the tournament.
The European tour confirmed to The Associated Press that it is the lowest 36-hole score to par in the tour’s history.
Waring, who opened with a 64 on Thursday, made nine birdies and an eagle in a bogey-free round at Yas Links and set a course record.
First-round leader Tommy Fleetwood of England (68), Johannes Veerman of the United States (67) and Danish players Niklas Norgaard (65) and Thorbjorn Olesen (67) were tied for second place on 14 under.
Rory McIlroy made a triple bogey on No. 17 in his second successive 67 and was nine strokes off the lead.
McIlroy can clinch a sixth Race to Dubai title with a win this week.