Egypt claimed its fifth consecutive African crown and seventh in total after it overcame Morocco 3-1 (21-25, 25-18, 25-12, 25-22) in the final of the 2013 Men's African Nations Championship held in Sousse, Tunisia. Egypt thus qualified for the World Cup Championship representing Africa, to be held next month in Tokyo. The newly-appointed minister of sports, Taher Abu Zeid, welcomed the team on its arrival at Cairo Airport and promised the players to increase their winning bonus after their achievement that he said “comes in good time to prove to the whole world that Egypt is still there and that Egyptians can compete and win”. Abu Zeid also paid special tribute to Abdel-Latif Othman, who was named the best player in Africa, Abdullah Abdel-Salam as best spiker and Ahmed Salah as best server. Ali Al-Sergani, head of the volleyball federation, gave the players a $200 bonus on the spot after the final match and expressed his gratitude. “I thank all the players and coaches for the great effort they exerted to keep the crown for Egypt although it was not an easy job as the national team passed through hard times because of lack of funding and as a result, lack of proper preparation for the event.” Al-Sergani also promised that the federation together with the ministry will provide the team with the training camps needed before the World Cup. The victory also put an end to the long-standing tension among the federation's board members who were constantly defying Al-Sergani's policies. Mediators asked Al-Sergani to start a new page and sit with the opposition to discuss the main points of tension and to try to resolve them as soon as possible as a stable team will be reflected in the Egyptian squad's results in the World Cup. Tunisia came in second after beating Cameroon 3-2 (19-15, 25-21, 29-27, 19-25, 19-17). Egypt finished the six-nation round robin tournament in first place with an unblemished total of 14 points followed by 11 points for Tunisia which took the silver medal. Morocco came in third with seven points for the bronze. Cameroon finished fourth and Algeria fifth with seven points followed by Libya at the bottom of the table. The Pharaohs were also crowned continental champions in 1976, 1983, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011.
