The death of footballer Mohamed Abdel-Wahab shook the nation. Abeer Anwar reports Common sense and science have been warning for some time that we're pushing athletes towards the limits of speed and toughness without regard for how they get there, or stay there. Mohamed Abdel-Wahab, at age 23, was one of those. Abdel-Wahab, football defender of Ahli and Egypt, had been training Thursday morning of last week in Ahli club when after 35 minutes, he suddenly fell to his knees, then his back, holding his head. At first, onlookers thought he had become dizzy from the sun and heat but it soon became apparent he was suffering from something much more serious. When he failed to revive, he was given first-aid then mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. When the severity of the situation became clear he was taken to nearby Misr International Hospital where he was pronounced dead. The hospital soon became flooded with football players and officials who hurried to the site as word spread of Abdel-Wahab's death. Ahli pronounced three days of mourning. President Hosni Mubarak sent condolences to the club. Ahli also discussed the possibility of Abdel-Wahab's LE1 million annual salary being paid to the player's family for the next three years. The Egyptian Football Association said the gate proceeds from Saturday's Africa Cup of Nations qualifying game against Burundi in Cairo would go to Abdel-Wahab's family. Abdel-Wahab helped Egypt win the Africa Cup of Nations in February and for the past two years was instrumental in Ahli's winning of the domestic league and African Champions League. Doctors attributed the death of Abdel-Wahab to sudden heart failure, although some observers suspect the problem was in the brain. Another issue was how to prevent further, similar deaths. After Abdel-Wahab's death Ahli and Ismaili clubs insisted that medical check-ups be conducted on all their athletes. Abdel-Wahab's death has resulted in a wake-up call. In the wake of the incident, Samir Zaher, head of the Egyptian federation, announced that players will be screened and that there will be a medical and an insurance scheme for all football players. "We will consider such medical check-ups as being mandatory," Ahmed Shaker, board member in the Egyptian Football Federation, said. In FIFA, in a chapter on sudden death in football issued in 2005, 93 per cent of sudden deaths in sports is said to be due to sudden cardiac death. It was thus decided that the identification and disqualification of affected athletes should be made before participation in competitive events which may prevent sudden death. FIFA officials also stated that preventive screening should be held, consisting of three specific aspects: meticulous history, thorough physical examination and electrocardiogram. Abdel-Wahab had not played a match since the end of the Egyptian season in May because of a dispute over his registration. The left full- back had been on loan at Ahli for the last two years from Al-Dafraa of the United Arab Emirates. But negotiations over a permanent move back to Cairo had stalled, ruling him out of the start of the new season and Ahli's campaign in the group phase of the African Champions League, which started in July. A dispute between the two clubs was due to be heard by FIFA next month. During that period Abdel-Wahab was to have returned to Ahli. It was a tragic week for Egyptian football. Three days before Abdel-Wahab died, two other Egyptian players passed away following a car accident -- Ahmed Wahid and Rami Gomaa of Tersana.
