Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 30 Nov. - 6 Dec. 2000 Issue No.510

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Silent dives

By Aline Kazandjian

El-Halabi: "I made it"

When Yehia El-Halabi won his first medal in diving at the age of 10, it was a silent victory, but one that could be heard well beyond the pool. El-Halabi was born deaf.

Now 22, El-Halabi is an inspiration not only to handicapped children or athletes involved in competitive sports, but to anyone with a physical or mental disability who wants to emulate the able-bodied.

El-Halabi's mother comes from an old diving family, the Daws, whose offspring have dominated Egypt's diving scene for decades. His twin brothers, 20-year-olds Khaled and Amr, are both diving champions who show promise of continuing the dynasty.

Uncle Said El-Daw, a former champion of repute, encouraged El-Halabi to take up the sport when he turned six. "I loved diving from the first time I tried it," says El-Halabi, who communicates with Amr's help. The siblings use sign language to "talk" to each other. So do all of El-Halabi's friends, who are quite numerous.

At first, his friends were sceptical he could plunge gracefully into a pool from great heights, but became believers when they came to see him.

His coaches were just as surprised and impressed. Zakaria El-Daw, national team coach, is also El-Halabi's uncle. "Diving is a very difficult sport," he says. "You must be very clever and brave." El-Halabi's biggest problem was that he could not hear the coach directing him while he was suspended in the air. "I was scared of hitting the water in the wrong position. It's very painful," says El-Halabi, smiling now after having learnt to depend on his own sense of timing when performing his aerial tricks. "I used to steal a peek at the coach by turning my head quickly to see his signals." That can be pretty tricky when falling like a rock from a height of 10 metres.

In summer he trains from 10.00am to 5.00pm, six days a week. Before championships he trains even longer.

"I don't like to sit alone at home," El-Halabi said in explaining why he loves to dive. "It's boring."

El-Halabi was his parents' first child. Although he received formal education, he says he did not enjoy going to school, feeling happier and far more satisfied hitting the water than the books.

"Diving not only helped him but also his family as well," El-Daw says. He remembers how devastated El-Halabi's mother was when she was told her son was deaf. "It changed her life completely," he says, "but when he won his first medal it brought a smile back to her face." Mom must have been smiling ever since; El-Halabi has won several local championships, collecting three silver medals in a recent national tournament.

Despite a handicap which would have understandably made him introverted, El-Halabi is sociable in the extreme. "I like the people on the diving team. They're all my friends." During practice he jokes with everyone, from the beginner tots to the advanced teenagers. They all know how to talk to him. He is seen as just another one of the guys. He even has his own fans; a deaf couple often come to watch him practice.

"I will continue to dive forever," says El-Halabi, who is obviously proud of his achievements. The love of the game seems to have born within him a love for life and people that otherwise might have eluded him like the sounds he was destined never to hear. "Thank God," he says, kissing his hand back and forth and looking up at the sky. "It's difficult, but thank God I made it."

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