Just hours after her elimination from the round of 16 in the Women's Sabre Individual event on Monday, Egyptian fencer Nada Hafez revealed her participation in the 2024 Paris Olympics while seven months pregnant.
Hafez lost 15-7 to Jiyoon Hyung of Korea in the Round of 16, bringing an end to her Olympic campaign.
"What seemed like two players on the field was, in reality, three," Hafez wrote on her Instagram account on Monday.
"I was there along with my opponent and my little child who has not yet entered our world."
"We, my child and I, faced our fair share of challenges, whether physical or emotional. The period of pregnancy is tough in itself, but the necessity to struggle to maintain a balance between life and sports was nothing short of exhausting, yet entirely worth it," she continued.
The 27-year-old reached the round of 16 after defeating world number seven, American fencer Elizabeth Tartakovsky, 15-13 in the Round of 32.
The Paris Olympics mark Hafez's third participation in the Olympics, having previously competed in Rio de Janeiro 2016 and Tokyo 2020.
But the Egyptian Physician failed to go through the Round of 32 in both occasions.
"I write this post to express that pride overwhelms me because I secured my place in the Round of 16. I am fortunate to have received the trust and support of my husband and family to reach this point," she added.
"These Olympics were different, specifically. I became an Olympian for the third time, but this time carrying a little Olympic champion," she concluded.
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