Greek Community of Alexandria

Tag: Egypt

  • Sara Ahmed Achieves Egypt’s First Medal at the Olympics

    Sara Ahmed Achieves Egypt’s First Medal at the Olympics

    ΑθλητικάEgyptian weightlifter Sara Ahmed won Egypt’s first medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics after finishing in third place in the women’s 69kg weightlifting event.

    Sara, who managed to lift 255kg, also became the first Egyptian woman to win a medal during the Olympics.

    The 18-year-old Egyptian weightlifter came third after Kazakhstan’s Zhazira Zhapparkul and China’s Xiang Yanmei, who came second and first respectively.

    Sara’s achievement also marked Egypt’s first weightlifting Olympic medal since 1948, when Attia Hamouda won silver.

    While this marks Egypt’s first medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Egypt has continued to impress many at home and overseas. Many of Egypt’s athletes have broken personal and continental records at the competition.

    (egyptianstreets.com)

  • Egypt nominates Moushira Khattab for UNESCO director-general

    Egypt nominates Moushira Khattab for UNESCO director-general

    Moshira KhattabEgypt decided on Saturday to nominate former Minister of Family and Population Moushira Khattab for the position of director-general of the United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

    The decision came after current director-general Irina Bokova announced candidacy for the UN secretary-general position. Citing officials, state-owned news agency MENA reported that Khattab has started visiting top officials from the UNESCO member states to secure their stances regarding her nomination.

    Officials stated that the tour is secretive and far from media follow-ups. However, privately-owned newspaper Al-Youm Al-Sabaa reported that many member states have welcomed the decision and support Khattab’s nomination.

    Rights lawyer Gamal Eid opposed the nomination, saying that he is not against Khattab’s nomination because she is secular, but rather because she is one of the prominent figures of the era of former president Hosni Mubarak.

    The nomination of Khattab came one year after Egypt nominated Ahmed Aboul-Gheit to be secretary-general of the Arab League. Aboul-Gheit served as the Foreign Minister from 2004 to 2011, and his nomination marked a comeback for the prominent figures of the Mubarak era.

    In 2014, founding director of Bibliotheca Alexandrina Ismael Serag El-Din was nominated for the UNESCO director-general position. Uproar amid intellectuals and activists also took place as Serag El-Din was a controversial nominee who was facing several charges in court. He was also a prominent figure of the Mubarak era.

    In 2009, Egypt nominated former Minister of Culture Farouk Hosni to the post of director-general as well, but chances of his appointment declined after anti-semitic statements were made, saying that if there were any Israeli books in the Alexandria library, he would burn them. The comments sparked international concern over whether he would be appropriate for the position.

    Activist Wael Abbas commented on the nomination of Hosni at the time, saying that he was a hypocrite and worked for a dictatorial regime. He also added that his ministry was involved in corruption.

    Earlier in May, Qatar nominated cultural adviser to the Emir, Hamad Al-Kuwari, for the same post, which will level the competition, as both Khattab and Al-Kuwari will attempt to win the support of the seven Arab countries that vote in the UNESCO.

    Khattab was the former Minister of Family and Population during the era of former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq in 2011. She also served as Egypt’s ambassador to South Africa, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. She further served at Egypt’s diplomatic mission in Austria, Hungary, and the United Nations.

    UNESCO is a specialised agency in the United Nations that aims to facilitate peace and security through fields such as education and natural sciences.

    (www.dailynewsegypt.com)

  • Egyptian volleyball team promises better results at Rio 2016

    Egyptian volleyball team promises better results at Rio 2016

    ΑίγυπτοςAfter a disappointing performance at the FIVB World League competition, the Egyptian men’s volleyball team has promised better results at the Rio 2016 Olympics next month.

    The team won four matches and lost five in the competition. However, Sherif El-Shemerly and team captain Hossam Abdallah promised to do better moving forward, saying the team was not in its best shape at the World League.

    According to Kingfut, the coach stated that three factors contributed to the team’s poor performance.

    “First, Ahmed Afifi, who is a very important player, got injured. Second, our best player did not show his best in Korea. Third, four important players did not participate in this game,” said El-Shemerly. “We have only four weeks to prepare for the Rio Olympic Games. Although this is not enough time to solve the problems, we will decrease errors.”

    Egypt qualified to the World League among the top 24 teams in the 2015 World League, in which Egypt placed 21st. The team started off with a promising win against the Czech Republic, followed by a loss versus Canada, a win against China, then a defeat from Finland.

    Egypt also defeated Japan and Turkey, but lost its last three games to the Netherlands, South Korea and Czech Republic. This set Egypt in seventh place out of the 12 teams in Group 2, which was not enough for a spot in the finals that will include the top three teams in the group along with the host country.

    Still, the Egyptian players left the competition on a good note, with three of them among the top 20 scorers out of 137 players in Group 2. Ahmed El-Kotb is currently not only the highest scoring player in Group 2 but in the entire league, with 188 points. Additionally, Captain Hossam Abdallah is the second best server in Group 2, fourth in the competition. He is also the fifth best setter in his group, while Ahmed Abdelaal is the third best digger.

    As number 17 in the world and winner of seven African Championships, Egypt is the second highest-ranking African country after Tunisia, which is only one place ahead. Tunisia represented Africa in the World League alongside Egypt, while Qatar was one of seven Asian countries participating.

    Qatar and Tunisia both competed in Group 3, where they ranked sixth and eighth, respectively. When the teams met, Qatar won 3-1.

    Egypt booked its ticket to the Rio 2016 Olympic volleyball event after beating Tunisia in the final of the men’s African Qualification Tournament that took place in Congo. Tunisia gave another shot at an Olympic berth in the second World Qualifier in Mexico, but failed to seize it after finishing in third place. Nevertheless, the Tunisians are eight-time African champions and have participated in six volleyball Olympic events.

    The Egyptians are hoping to improve their performance in Rio 2016.

    “Congratulations to the Czech Republic. I think we played a full five-set match with Korea yesterday and the players felt tired. That is why we could not play well today,” said Abdullah, following the defeat against Czech Republic. “We are going to recover and show a good performance at the Rio Olympic Games.”

    Egypt will play against Poland on Aug. 7, Cuba on Aug. 10, Russia on the Aug. 11, Iran on Aug. 13 and Argentina on Aug. 15. It will proceed to the quarter finals if it ranks in the top four out of the six teams in its pool. This will be Egypt’s fifth Olympic volleyball participation, with a best finish of tenth place in Los Angeles 1984, when Tunisia ranked ninth.

    On the other hand, Qatar will make its Olympic volleyball debut this year at the beach volleyball event, to which Tunisia and Egypt are heading as well.

    (stepfeed.com)

  • 4,200-Year-Old Egyptian Temple Discovered to Have Remarkably Well Preserved Artwork

    4,200-Year-Old Egyptian Temple Discovered to Have Remarkably Well Preserved Artwork

    ΑρχαιολογίαScattered throughout modern Egypt are many ancient temples which are famous for their splendor and historical significance. The perfect example of one of these breathtaking displays of luxury is the Temple of Hathor. Built around 2250 BC, the artwork that runs throughout the building is remarkably well kept, despite being thousands and thousands of years old. As the main temple within the significant Dendera Temple complex, it is known for being one of the best-preserved sites in all of Egypt.

    Facing the Nile, the sanctuary layout is classical Egyptian, containing stunning examples of Ptolemaic Egyptian artwork including depictions of Cleopatra and her son, fathered by Julius Caesar. The temple itself was built to worship the Ancient Egyptian goddess Hathor, who personified feminine love, healing, and motherhood. Imposing columns have been carved to bear the face of the goddess, complete with the cow horns she is typically shown to bear.

    Though the entire temple is magnificent, it is the ceiling that remains the true masterpiece. Recently, workers carefully removed hundreds of years of black soot which accumulated as a centuries-old Arab village established camp within the temple. Through the restoration, a spectacular and vibrant painting overhead was slowly revealed. Decorated with a complex astrological chart of the heavens and zodiac signs, the ancient temple ceiling now offers a highly detailed setting to study or just a lovely scene to visit and be swept away by the antiquated opulence.

    (www.mymodernmet.com)