The young Pharaohs of Egypt won the gold medal in the men’s team in the Junior Epee Fencing World Cup and a bronze in the women’s individual by a surprising Farah Mahfouz.
The championship took place from 31 January to 2 February in the sports complex in the New Administrative Capital in Cairo.
The national anthem rang out in the indoor hall of the Al-Nadi Club in a tournament which included individual and team competitions for both men and women.
The triumphant men’s team comprised Youssef Shamel, Eslam Osama, Mahmoud Al-Sayed and Fouad Gharib. Egypt comfortably beat the US in the final 45-33. The young Pharaohs displayed an exceptional performance throughout, starting the day by beating Saudi Arabia 45-28 in the round of 16, then China 45-25 in the quarter-finals. In the semi-final, Egypt beat Hungary 45-38 before downing the US in the final.
“We are very happy to win the gold medal at the Cairo World Cup among the Egyptian fans who cheered us on throughout the competition. This medal compensated for our poor individual performance,” Al-Sayed, captain of the Egyptian team, said.

Still, among the women, the young Mahfouz was the surprise of this World Cup by winning the bronze medal in the individual event. The Egyptian swordswoman started her journey by winning four of six matches in the preliminary round to qualify for the main round. In round 128, she beat Brazilian Laura Correla (15-12) before beating France’s Anaelle Doquet (13-12) in round 64. Mahfouz continued her momentum in the round of 16 by beating Switzerland’s Pauline Heubi (15-14). She then defeated Hungarian Julia Rozsas (15-14).
In the decisive quarter-final medal match, Mahfouz beat Italy’s Giulia Paulis 15-13 to confirm the bronze medal before losing her semi-final to Hungary’s Blanka Virag Nagy (6-15) who won the gold. “This medal is very precious to me. I can’t describe my emotions, with the encouragement of my family, my coaches and my friends. This victory makes me more eager to win other international medals,” Mahfouz, full of emotion, said.
In the women’s team competition, the Egyptian selection, composed of Mahfouz, Loula Suleiman, Farida Morad and Jana Al-Sayed, came in eighth place.
“The Egyptian Fencing Federation is totally satisfied with this performance with two medals, including one gold,” President of the Egyptian Fencing Federation Tarek Al-Husseini said.
“This proves that Egypt is on the right track with young fencers who can continue the momentum.”
* A version of this article appears in print in the 6 February, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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