Death of a football star
EGYPTIAN football player Ahmed Refaat, a star forward for the club Modern Future and the national team, died on Saturday of apparent heart complications. He was 31.
Refaat collapsed on the field in a domestic league game against Ittihad of Alexandria on 11 March, suffering from a cardiac arrest. He was off the ball at the time and was standing alone on his side of the pitch. He received medical attention on the field before losing consciousness for several days.
He was hospitalised in Alexandria before being transferred to Cairo for further treatment on 25 March. He was discharged on 11 April but continued receiving treatment and had been fitted with a pacemaker.
“With great sadness, Modern Future announces the death of Ahmed Refaat as a result of his deteriorating health condition,” the club said in a statement.
“The club extends its sincere condolences to the player’s family and the Egyptian football fans.”
Confederation of African Football (CAF) President Patrice Motsepe also conveyed his “heartfelt condolences to Refaat’s family, the Egyptian Football Association and the Egyptian football family.”
Refaat joined Future FC from Masri in October 2021, scoring nine goals in 29 appearances last season.
The former Zamalek and Enppi player made his debut with Egypt’s national football team in 2013, making seven appearances with the Pharaohs.
Al-Neni, Zizo in Paris
FORMER Arsenal midfielder Mohamed Al-Neni and Zamalek right winger Ahmed Sayed, better known as Zizo, have been chosen as part of the Egyptian football team playing in this month’s Paris Olympics.
Egypt are placed in Group C alongside Spain, Uzbekistan, and the Dominican Republic.
Teams participating in the tournament are restricted to under-23 players (born on or after 1 January 2001) with a maximum of three over-age players allowed.
Egypt U23 boss Rogério Micale, winner of the Olympic gold medal with Brazil in 2016, could not corral Liverpool ace Mohamed Salah, Mahmoud Trezeguet who plays for Trabzonspor in Turkey or Hamdi Fathi, midfielder for Qatar club Al-Wakrah. The three were prevented from playing in the Olympics by their clubs.
Among the pool of seniors, Micale had also sought Ahly duo Mohamed Abdel-Monem and Emam Ashour but the club turned the request down because of their hectic schedule and their title push. Pyramids FC of Egypt also spurned Micale as they hope to win their first-ever league title.
Micale’s third over-age choice has not been announced.
Al-Neni is currently without a club after his contract with Arsenal expired just last month but with 98 caps to his name, he will bring vast experience to a young Egyptian squad.
It will mark Al-Neni’s second Olympic Games, having played in the 2012 edition in London, when he guided Egypt to the quarter-finals before falling to Japan.
Zizo, 28, has been a regular for the national team after starring for Zamalek club and will surely provide Micale with attacking power.
To prepare for Paris, the U-23 team will play two friendlies in France, against Ukraine and Iraq on 14 and 17 July respectively.
The Olympics are scheduled to take place from 26 July to 11 August.
The men’s football tournament will be from 24 July to 9 August.
Make or break
DEFENDING champion Ahly and relative newcomer Pyramids will meet tomorrow in a clash that could determine to a large extent who will win the Egyptian football league.
As of writing, Pyramids are atop the standings with 68 points after 27 matches with seven games remaining.
Ahly are in second with 57 points but with four games in hand.
Should Ahly win their remaining postponed games they would be one point ahead.
Their titanic match-up is scheduled for 12 July.
While Ahly were founded in 1907 and hold a record 43 domestic titles, Pyramids were formed in only 2018 and possess no league crowns. However, successive Saudi and UAE ownerships have enriched the club, allowing them to buy big-name local players and those from the rest of Africa.
Try again
EGYPT were placed in Group C, along with Cape Verde, Mauritania and Botswana, following the draw for the qualifiers for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) to be held in Morocco in 2025.
The draw was held in Johannesburg on 4 July.
Egypt have won the AFCON a record seven times but the last was in 2010. Earlier this year, in the AFCON played in Ivory Coast and won by the hosts, Egypt were ousted by DR Congo in the round of 16.
Forty-eight African countries will be aiming to qualify for the 35th edition of the biennial Africa showpiece, the biggest sporting event in the continent.
The qualifiers will start in September 2024 and end November 2024.
The first and runners-up in the 11 groups that do not involve tournament hosts Morocco will gain qualification to the competition.
The AFCON will be held from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026.
Swimming miscue
EGYPTIAN swimming sensation Farida Osman failed to qualify for the Paris Olympic after missing the qualifications by a fraction of a second — and following an earlier misunderstanding of the rules.
Osman, who had previously appeared in three Olympic Games, narrowly missed a qualification cut time in the 50-metre freestyle by two-hundredths of a second, finishing at 24.70 seconds.
However, reports suggested that Osman had previously been confirmed for the Paris Games even before the qualifications on the basis of her world ranking. She later learned she would not compete due to limited quota restrictions for Paris, according to the reports.
With an Olympic B standard time that positions her as the fastest Egyptian female swimmer, Osman said she had received official confirmation from the Egyptian Olympic Committee that she will be participating in the Paris Games.
Except Osman’s qualification was never actually secured and the rules were misinterpreted by Egyptian officials.
In June 2022, World Aquatics announced changes to its universality system, stating that universality athletes can only compete in up to two Olympic Games in their career and must not be older than the age of 30 as of 31 December 2024.
Universality athletes are those who have the opportunity to compete to ensure representation from countries even if they do not hit the qualifying standard.
As a three-time Olympian, Osman, 29, was not eligible for a universality place in Paris, a fact that seems to have escaped the relevant governing bodies in Egypt, as well as the swimmer herself, as reported by The National.
Universality athletes take priority over swimmers who have achieved the B standard times and Osman didn’t make the cut because all spots in the 50 m freestyle had been filled.
In a statement Osman expressed her “deep disappointment” at missing the Games.
“After months of relentless training, I am devastated to learn that I will not be representing Egypt at the Paris Olympics,” Osman said in her statement but offered her “unwavering support” to the entire Egyptian delegation competing in Paris.
Osman participated in the London, Rio and Tokyo Olympics but came up short of a medal each time.
Nicknamed “the golden fish”, in 2017 Osman became the first Egyptian woman to win a medal in the World Aquatics Championships when she claimed bronze in the 50 m butterfly.
In February this year, she repeated the feat, this time in Doha, Qatar.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 11 July, 2024 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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