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Al-Ahram Weekly 14 - 20 September 2000 Issue No. 499 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 14 - 20 September 2000 Issue No. 499
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region Interview International Economy Opinion Culture Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Sad but true
BY Nashwa Abdel-Tawab
The facts speak for themselves. Going by the record -- 18 medals, the last captured in 1984 -- Egypt's chances of winning anything in Sydney is slim, to put it mildly. The situation is a bitter pill to swallow but is hardly news to the president of the National Olympic Committee (NOC). Munir Thabet is trying to be as realistic as possible. With both feet planted firmly on the ground, Thabet keeps count of the rosy predictions several sports federations have made as to the number of medals they expect to win. He wouldn't be blamed if such grandiose expectations fail to excite him. Fresh in his memory is the fiasco of 1996 when at least a dozen medals were said to be in the bag; Egypt left Atlanta with zilch.
"Of course we want medals," Munir said shortly before leaving for Sydney. "But I can't ask for the impossible. The standard of players worldwide is high and improving quickly. We are doing our best to try to keep up. We know it's hard and almost impossible to win a medal but why not try."
Conceding that not one medal can be guaranteed, Thabet has decided that punitive measures for failure would not be the proper reaction. In a departure from the 1996 Games, he announced there would be no fines or any other penalties imposed on players or their federations if they don't come through. "I don't want to put my players under any physical or mental stress either from the media, families or country," said Thabet. "They will be under no obligation. We are aiming for an honourable representation in Sydney 2000." In fact, that could be the most to expect.
Every sports federation had its own criteria when choosing its players who have gone to Sydney. But Thabet believes that any player who has worked hard for the past four years has the right to participate in the Games regardless of what results are achieved. "We can't deprive them of at least the dream of going to the Olympics."
Thabet has heard it all before -- not enough money, rundown facilities, not enough international exposure -- after every Olympic embarrassment. But he is sure that his athletes are capable of doing something "if they believe in themselves."
He also believes in divine intervention. "With some prayers they might hit the ball and win. Who knows?"
