Al-Ahram Weekly | Sports

		21 - 27 November 2002 Issue No. 613 Sports	Current issue Previous issue Site map
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875

The runaways
Egyptians were shocked earlier this week when an earthquake struck. Well, struck a part of the population to be more precise. The strike came in the sports field; the wrestling federation in particular. It was not that they lost, or were thrashed, but they were knocked to the ground by surprise at the announcement of the retirement of Egypt's world silver medallist Greco Roman wrestler Karam Gaber.
After winning second place at the World Championship last September in Moscow, Gaber became Egypt's new prodigy, reigniting hope that Egypt can once begin to add medals to the cabinet that had remained unchanged since the team's heydays in the 1940s and 1950s. At that time, winning medals at World Championships and Olympic Games was the near norm.
It goes without say that the 28-year-old world champion, and his bronze-medallist teammate Mohamed Abdel-Fatah, were embraced and celebrated upon their arrivals back home. Gaber, however, has put a stop to the fun; he suddenly announced his retirement earlier this week.
Disappointment and depression were the main reasons behind the retirement decision of the champion who has been collecting various medals for seven years now on the regional and international levels.
According to Gaber, he has not been financially compensated by the officials: namely the Ministry of Youth and the Egyptian Wrestling Federation. The prizes and awards his teammates and him have received, he told the press, have not been up to their triumphs. The real frustration, the so-called sad champion complained, stemmed from the promises. Since the start of his victory ride, he has heard time and again the promise of valuable rewards and increases in salary. It has been, however, simply talk. All of these promises have just blown around as echoes in the air. Even the special training programme that was meant to be arranged to prepare Gaber for the Olympic Games was not remotely close to the level intended. According to Gaber, it was a modest programme geared towards players far below his level; something that would bring him down if he were to partake. And on top of all that, after his big win, Gaber received just LE25,000: A sum that he said did not reflect his achievement. And so he left.
The Egyptian, Arab, and African champion chose the USA as his destination of choice; leaving with his brother to settle and turn pro at one of the world's famous wrestling clubs. There, he says, his talents and skills will be nurtured and appreciated -- and rewarded accordingly -- and he will have the chance to properly prepare for the Olympic Games.
For Gaber, the decision comes as a striking change. For years the champion has been turning down offers to turn pro in Europe; his reasoning being that he wanted to play only for his country. At this point, however, he says he cannot turn the offers down anymore.
Well, it saddens me to think that Egypt has lost a champion and a great opportunity to retain its position in the world of wrestling. But, Gaber is not the only example; not the first and he isn't going to be the last. In past years we have been introduced to players who started with energy and enthusiasm but became disheartened and either fled or retired.
The problem, many say, stems from football. Football and its players have been swallowing up all the national budget allocated for sports; regardless of whether players and teams were achieving. The budget that is left is small, and spread too thin to have any sort of positive effect. The awards other sports champions receive, in consequence, is considered peanuts in relation to football earnings.
As long as Egyptian officials continue to ignore the real champions, and deprive them of their rights of training and bonuses, there will be a continuous stream of players heading out of the local sports arena. And sooner than they know, the sports fields, and pitches, and courts, will be bare. It is in their hands to keep their champions from running away..

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