Eleven years ago, when Egyptian karate player Malek Ahmed was just four years old, she would accompany her father and coach to a well-known club, enjoying what her father did while training young people in the sport she fell in love with. Over the years, she turned professional and reached the international stage. On Friday, Malek won the Mediterranean gold medal in Cyprus, one of the major international tournaments that sees fierce competition among participants from various countries.
Malek describes her gold medal achievement as a "dream," stating, "I have worked hard for many years to attain this global title, and God willing, this will be the beginning of big dreams I will work to realize in the coming years. My wish is to continue this journey to its end." She added in her conversation with Sky News Arabia, "I played three matches in the tournament: the first against a champion from Greece, the second against a very strong champion from Morocco, who is the number one in the world, and the third was the final against my fellow Egyptian. All the matches were very tough, but I managed to win them by a comfortable points margin and secure the title."
The Egyptian Karate Federation congratulated Malek through its official Facebook page, saying, "Congratulations to Egypt for the Mediterranean gold medal! A billion congratulations from the Board of Directors of the Egyptian Karate Federation led by Mr. Mohamed El-Dehrawy. Malek Ahmed wins the first Mediterranean championship in Cyprus."
The Mediterranean gold medalist expressed, "It feels great to represent my country in international competitions, and I always dream of being a reason for Egypt's elevation globally, having a good reputation among countries as an outstanding nation in the sport with a rich history, and I want to be a reason for our progress in the global rankings." Malek conveyed a message to her father and coach, saying, "Thank you very much for all the effort you put into me over the past years; you are my real support and the first to back me. God willing, we will continue this journey together as we wish toward global recognition."
The Cypriot Karate Federation honored Egyptian team player Feryal Ashraf during the tournament, in the presence of many prominent sports leaders worldwide, after she won a gold medal in the recent Olympic Games held in Tokyo.
Dr. Ahmed Adel, Malek's father and coach, recounted the tough journey, saying, "We worked for nearly 10 years to reach these wonderful moments. We trained a lot, and Malek practiced for long hours during those years, achieving several championships as the top in the republic multiple times, including the Arab Championship in Tunisia, which was the only gold medal for Egypt at that time."
Dr. Adel continued in his talk with Sky News Arabia, "Because of COVID-19, Malek had fewer opportunities for international competition. The tournament was very difficult as Malek faced the world's hardest weight categories and went against the Moroccan champion in the semifinals, who is a world and African champion with significant strength and experience. However, Malek defeated her by a large margin after trailing by two points with 20 seconds left in the match, marking the first defeat for her in almost four years."
He noted that "the final was a pure Egyptian match that Malek was able to win. We monitored the champion through various websites recording points without seeing the actual performance and were extremely tense."
He affirmed, "I spoke to her through one of the karate administrative champions, encouraging her that she is a champion and worked hard to reach this position, telling her to enjoy the tournament and play in a manner that satisfies her and what she did, without regrets about anything she wished to do in the tournament."
The father shared the victorious moments with Sky News Arabia, saying, "We were incredibly happy after the match; my wife, daughter, and I were in the car on the road. We all screamed with joy and excitement. We couldn't contain ourselves after she achieved this accomplishment and started her first steps toward the international stage." Many suggested finding another coach for her to avoid a conflict between a father and coach, but she constantly reassured that she would reach global recognition with him.
He added, "The training camp in France, where Malek traveled before the tournament for three weeks, changed her style and playing significantly, as France is known for its strength in the sport and has many world champions. They were impressed by her and her unique style of play. We are also recently preparing for the African Championship in Egypt, where, with God’s will, we hope to win, and that Malek's name would be written in lights as she continues to shine and excel."
