Al-Ahram Weekly 17 - 23 June 1999 Issue No. 434
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875

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One step backwards

By Inas Mazhar

The 35-28 win over Cuba turned out to be Egypt's most successful game in the 16th World Handball Championship. The victory, which came in the country's final match, spared the blushes of the players and fans alike after failing to reach the semi-finals, and a chance at winning a medal, and falling to seventh place in the world after having finished sixth in the last two World Championships. The win over Cuba meant that Egypt automatically qualified for the 2000 Sydney Olympics, thus salvaging lost pride and avoiding having to go through African qualifications. Unlike the 24-team World Championships, only 12 teams play in the Olympics: the host nation, the first seven teams in the World Championship and the four continental champions.

Germany beat France 26-21 to take fifth place, an improvement for the Germans who did not even qualify for the 1997 World Championship in Japan. France, however, dipped to its lowest level since winning the world title in 1995 and gaining a bronze in 1997.

Egypt finished sixth in the 1995 World Championship in Iceland and did it again two years later in Japan. There was nowhere to go but up, said just about everybody. After a euphoric preliminary round in which Egypt won four games and lost once, the team entertained hopes of going all the way. A tough win over African champions Tunisia in round 16 brought the dream of a world title closer but a 26-20 quarter-final loss to Russia, the defending champions, brought Egyptians back down to earth with a thud. It was the Egyptians' worst performance of the tournament, made all the more humiliating by being played in front of 30,000 spectators in Cairo Stadium's indoor complex, the largest crowd to witness a game in the tournament and one of the largest attendance figures ever for a handball match. The Russians took an unprecedented 7-0 lead in the first 12 minutes and never looked back as Egypt was forced to play catch-up for the rest of the match. It was to prove an exercise in futility as Egypt was never able to narrow the margin to seriously threaten the Russians.

Reflecting fan disenchantment, only 10,000 bothered to show up when Egypt lost to France 27-25 in the battle for fifth and sixth spots. The game needed 10 minutes of extra time after the two sides had fought to a 22-22 draw in regulation time.

Tears and jeers: Much to the disappointment of their fans, Egypt finished seventh as the World Handball Championship drew to a close. On the bright side, the ranking meant Egypt automatically qualified for the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. It was standing room only at Cairo Stadium's main hall for most of Egypt's matches. Defeating Cuba was Egypt's last chance to qualify in Sydney (photos: Khaled El-Fiqi)

The loss forced Egypt into what a few days earlier had seemed an unimaginable situation -- a play-off match for the seventh and eighth places. Cuba, its opponents, were the dark horse of the championship, felling Denmark in round 16 in a stunning upset. But Egypt had beaten Cuba in the preliminary round and sought to do so again, this time in a much more crucial situation. The game, played before a crowd that had now dwindled to 5,000, was the only chance left for the Egyptians to redeem themselves -- and they did as they defeated the Latin American upstarts by six goals, the last being scored by the unlikely figure of goalkeeper Khaled Al-Awadi.

The win over Cuba and the subsequent qualification for the Olympics did little to placate Hassan Mustafa, president of the Egyptian Handball Federation, who put the blame for Egypt's performance at the championship squarely on the shoulders of his players, squandering what he called a once in a lifetime opportunity. "They are to blame for this," Mustafa said. "We failed to take advantage of playing at home and in front of these fans. We will not get an opportunity like this again."

At a press conference following the match, Egypt's Spanish coach Javier Cuesta not surprisingly announced he was leaving the team because he had given the players all his know-how, had done his best and had nothing more to offer. He said that while his team had committed several mistakes, he had not promised the title. "I only promised a higher seeding, but the players didn't help." Egypt's coach since 1995, Cuesta's contract with the federation ends this month.

Apparently, Cuesta will not be the only Egyptian team casualty of the championship. Mustafa said that at the end of the championship, the federation will study where the team went wrong. Some heads might roll. "Some decisions will be made. We will announce them in due time."

Mustafa desisted from finger-pointing and urged others to do the same, at least for now. "Our work will continue," Mustafa said. "We can't sit around blaming each other for what happened. We have to think about the Olympic Games. We have qualified and that is an achievement in itself. That's our main goal in the future. It could help us regain our pride and reconcile with everyone who put his trust in us."

"Of course we are not happy with either the team's results or performance," Mustafa continued. "We had planned to win the World Championship." Those plans fell through and might not be revived for quite some time.

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