Egypt's mentally handicapped athletes can make it three in a row but appear willing to forfeit the opportunity. Abeer Anwar explains and talks to a leading official about why there is less emphasis on winning Click to view caption Egypt's mentally disabled athletes travel to Lebanon next week to defend their title at the third Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Games. However, a new system of selection indicates that there might be something the team holds more important than winning. This will be the first time that the selected athletes are not necessarily the best, a system which gives the opportunity for new faces to compete. Out of the 36 athletes, only four have international experience. "The rest are new at this which is great," said Ashraf El- Ougeil, head of the Greater Cairo branch and training department at Special Olympics (SO) Egypt, with not a hint of sarcasm. El-Ougeil, the manager of the Egyptian delegation to the Games, added that the players were chosen not only from schools but from mental care societies and clubs as well. "We also chose a number of new faces as coaches because we want to form a second generation that can help in the future." Even with a team not at full strength, Egypt, which came out on top in the MENA Games staged in Cairo 1999 and Morocco 2000, is hoping to emulate those achievements by going to Lebanon with the second biggest contingent after the hosts: 36 athletes from 27 societies for the mentally disabled, schools and clubs and 13 coaches. They will participate in the Games' five sports: five-a-side football, basketball, swimming, table tennis and athletics. Mohamed El-Alfi, SO Egypt national director and head of the delegation, said the athletes were chosen from the Greater Cairo Invitational held in April and have been training three times a week since at Misr Language Schools which opens its door for free to the mentally disabled. The Egyptian teams travel to Lebanon on 2 September, a day before the official opening. The tournament ends 10 September. The track and field squad includes 12 athletes competing in the 100, 200, 400 and 800 metres, 4X100 relay, the long jump and shotput. For the past three months, Hisham Sayed, athletics technical manager and Dalia El-Shazli, athletics coach, have been stressing not only fitness and talent but politeness and obedience. "It is great to be with such children," Tamer Hassan, the athletics coach, said. "You give a little but you get a lot of sincere emotions and love." A fourth athletics coach is travelling with the team. "Each one has to take care of three athletes, not only on the field but off it," El-Shazli said. "You have to take care of their food, health, hygiene and their behaviour throughout the day. It's a big responsibility because sometimes you have to feed them yourself but I really enjoy it. They are like little angels whose love is unlimited. You get sincere emotions from them." Six swimmers, including three females, represent the Egyptian team, the first time Egypt will participate with women at the MENA Games. "This is to give an equal chance to the girls that have been training since 1998," coach Noura Ahmed said. The swim team trains in the Education Ministry's pool for free. Abdel- Aziz Mohamed, the pool's manager, opened the pool for the swimmers at any time of the day. "We have been training twice a week, even on Fridays, and he always comes to root for the swimmers and give a hand," coach Amr Moheiddin said of Mohamed. Egypt will compete in the 25m and 50m freestyle and 50m and 100m breast stroke. Eight athletes will enter basketball which is divided into two halves of 20 minutes each. "We have worked hard with the players to form a team as each one has to feel a sense of belonging with his teammates," basketball coach Farid El-Sayed said. "We made them eat together, play together and relax together to create a friendly atmosphere between them," added coach Bassem Mohamed. The assistant manager of the Egyptian delegation, Ali El-Alfi, a 23-year-old pro basketball player, joined Special Olympics as a volunteer before coaching the basketball team. "It is fantastic to deal with such players. I have learned to be patient and I am always surrounded by their love and care." Eight athletes will also form the five- a-side football team which will play two halves, 15 minutes each. Reda Abu Zeid and Hussein Youssef are the coaches. "We train the players on how to act as a team because they come from different places," Abu Zeid said. "This is the most difficult thing, to make them act as a team and understand when they are supposed to pass. Each one of them knows how to play but to play as a team, here lies the problem." A number of family members are accompanying their children to Lebanon, paying for the trip from their own pocket. Mustafa El-Samahi is an engineer whose son Mazen is on the table tennis team. "Ever since Mazen was born we knew he was mentally disabled. When we started to think about what to do we learnt about the Special Olympics. Mazen was very hyperactive and destructive at times but sports has changed him a lot." El- Samahi, who is a volunteer worker for SO, added that Mazen had become very sociable, polite and that all his energy had been channelled to sports." He feels he is a star and I am very happy to see him so self-confident." Dr Fawzia Mohamed, a pediatrician who has been volunteering as the swimming team's doctor for years, has two sons. The youngest, Fahd, suffers from Down's syndrome. "I knew it from the beginning," Mohamed said. "I decided to resort to sports which played a big role with Fahd. He is now a champion and he is also working as a textile employee at Misr Language Schools. His work, and that of his teammates, is wonderful. They sell carpets even before they are finished." Fahd is also learning how to read and write and has finished the first semester at the Shooting Club. So how well will Egypt do in Lebanon as it journeys with a relatively weak squad? Swimmer Fahd Fayez, 23, who won a number of gold medals at the World Summer Games in New Haven in 1995 and the first MENA Games in 1999, sums up the feeling of many teammates. "I will go to win a number of medals. I'm not afraid because I've won before." But MENA is not just about medals and winning times. "It was due to the efforts of Mrs Suzanne Mubarak that these children have come to the surface," Magda Moussa, president of Special Olympics Egypt, said. "Sports has changed them from dependent to independent individuals able to play a big part in their societies." Hoping the circle widens Abdel-Wahab: "When the athletes are happy I will know that the games have been a success." photo: Ayman Barayez The third Special Olympics Games in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), starting in Beirut next week, has attracted 400 athletes from 19 countries who will vie in five sports. In 1999, the first MENA Games in Cairo included 13 countries, the same number as in MENA II in Morocco in 2000. The new faces this year are Libya, Iraq, Yemen and Palestine "despite the struggle of the Palestinian people," Ayman Abdel-Wahab, Special Olympics MENA's managing director, said. "This proves that our voice has reached every country and this is very important." The games are a warm-up for the Special Olympics World Summer Games to take place in Ireland in July next year. Dubai will organise the fourth MENA Games in 2004. "I hope that by that time we will be able to include 15 sports," said Abdel-Wahab. Asked by the Weekly why Lebanon was playing host after SO Lebanon organised the first MENA women's basketball tournament in July, Abdel-Wahab maintained that the Lebanese programme was one of the best in the MENA region. "There are also a lot of dedicated people like Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Al-Hariri who agreed to hold the games under his auspicious. "Hala Al-Husseini, SO Lebanon national director, and Mohamed Nasser, SOI sports director, are the engines behind the games," Abdel-Wahab added. This is the first MENA Games in which all the results will be registered on computers immediately and where all sports laws and rules will be translated into Arabic. "It will also be the first tournament to apply the Healthy Athlete programme before and during the Games," Abdel- Wahab said, calling the program a medical plan responsible for the health of mentally handicapped athletes. Added Abdel-Wahab, "a number of Lebanese doctors headed by Dr Waheed Torouh have volunteered to work with the athletes during the games which will include 400 volunteer family members." He said the Special Olympics movement was different from any other sports institution in that it serves all kinds of handicapped victims and that even severe cases are given an equal chance to play. Athletes are grouped according to their age, ability and the extent of their handicap so that they compete with other players equal to their abilities. "Special Olympics is flourishing worldwide and the MENA region is no exception. But all this success could be ruined unless we receive more help. With the help of first ladies and chairpersons of various establishments, SO MENA programmes started taking shape and gaining momentum. They worked together to ensure that the best is on display during the games. "This is what we are after at the Special Olympics: enjoyment and the inclusion of our athletes in the joys of sport, an objective that if fulfilled will help us to increase the number of SO athletes, volunteers and supporters." To ensure a successful outcome, Abdel-Wahab paid several visits to participating countries in the region to see first-hand that everything is on track. A number of training courses for coaches in the sports that will be played have been held, one way of making the tournament more competitive and run smoother. "Before, the mentally handicapped were locked up in rooms," said Abdel-Wahab. "Now they are travelling abroad, representing their countries, making friends and enjoying victory. This is our aim: to make the mentally disabled enjoy their lives and be able to communicate with the outside world." The games will be attended by Timothy Shriver, SOI president and CEO. Invitations have also been extended to all first ladies and Arab sports ministers. "When the athletes experience happiness and joy I will know that the Games have been a success," said Abdel-Wahab. "They will return to their countries and tell their neighbours and friends and the circle will widen."
