Arab athletes experienced their best day at the Tokyo Summer Olympics, clinching a gold medal for Egypt's Feryal Ashraf in karate, along with three silvers and a bronze yesterday, in the second-to-last day of the games. The Arabs boosted their historical tally in the Olympics with five golds, five silvers, and eight bronzes.
Karate athlete Feryal Ashraf Abdelaziz gifted Egypt its first gold medal in the Summer Olympics since 2004 after winning in the +61 kg category. The 22-year-old excelled in the final against Azerbaijan's Irina Zaretskaya, the world champion of 2018 in the -68 kg category, with a score of 2-0. The last athlete to secure a gold for Egypt was wrestler Karam Gaber in Athens 2004. This marks the second medal won by Egyptian women in karate, following Gianna Farouk's bronze last Friday.
Feryal Ashraf finished seventh in the 2018 World Championship and became the 2019 World Junior Champion in the -68 kg category and the African Champion in 2020. She started this sport at the age of seven and enjoys reading and drawing. Feryal stated, "I can't describe this moment. I worked hard to get here." The pharmacy student added, "I thank my family and the coaches who worked with me; we placed Egypt among the greats."
**Hamadhi Misses Gold**
Saudi karate player Tarek Hamadi was on the verge of providing his country with its first gold medal in history but made a technical error in the final, settling for the silver in the +75 kg category. The 23-year-old lost the final match to Iranian Sajjad Ganjzadeh after committing a "Hansoku" technical error while leading 4-1 against his opponent. This represents Saudi Arabia's second silver medal in history, following Hadi Souan in the 400m hurdles at the Sydney 2000 Games.
Hamadi was on track to win gold when he kicked his opponent and knocked him down, but after deliberation among the judges, they decided to disqualify him and award the gold to the Iranian player. He stated, "Our ambition was gold; I received a disqualification from the referee, who considered the blow was too strong. I have no comment on the judge." Hamadi expressed, "I will soon compete in the World Championship in Dubai and will try to make up for it with gold."
**Modern Pentathlon Silver**
Egyptian Ahmed Osama El-Gendy, 21, secured a silver medal in the modern pentathlon with a score of 1482 points, just five points behind British Joseph Chung. South Korea's Wongtae John finished third with 1470 points. Athletes score points in fencing (ranking round), swimming 200m, followed by an additional fencing round, then they compete in horseback riding, pistol shooting from a distance of 10 meters, and running.
El-Gendy previously secured first place in the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires in 2018 and finished third in the World Championship in 2021 in Cairo, even after suffering a shoulder dislocation before that match. After his victory, he said, "The feeling is great, and the medal is heavy; I never expected it to be this heavy." He recounted starting the sport at six: "It was a coincidence. When I was young, my mother took me to learn swimming at the club because I suffered from breathing issues, and the doctor recommended swimming to improve my breathing." He continued, "But my mother liked the idea of me practicing five sports and encouraged me to join." He was named the International Union's Best Emerging Player in modern pentathlon in 2018 and 2019.
**First Medal for Bahrain**
In the 10,000-meter race, Bahraini runner Kalkidan Gezahegne finished second behind Dutch star Sifan Hassan, giving the Gulf nation its first medal in Tokyo. Gezahegne, 30, originally from Ethiopia, previously represented her home country but obtained Bahraini citizenship. She had never participated in the 10,000-meter race at a major championship, competing instead in the 1500m and 5000m at three World Championships with no significant results, before achieving gold in those two events at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta. Gezahegne remarked, "The race was exhausting, especially due to humidity. In the next Olympics, I will win gold in the marathon."
**Beach Volleyball Bronze**
The diligent Qatari duo of Sharif Younes and Ahmed Tijane did not leave empty-handed, earning a bronze medal in beach volleyball. Younes and Tijane overcame the Latvian pair Martins Plavins and Edgars Toks with scores of 21-12 and 21-18 in 41 minutes. This marks Qatar's third medal in Tokyo, following gold medals won by powerlifter Fares Hassouna and Mutaz Barshim in high jump.
