Abd El-Moneim Salah, the technical director of the Egyptian Powerlifting team, revealed the reasons behind excluding some players from the Egyptian Powerlifting national team in the upcoming World Championship, which is to be held from August 18th to 30th in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Salah stated: “We had the African Championship in October last year, and we wanted to participate with the largest number of players to win the first place, as the championship was in Egypt. After the championship, we officially announced that those who ranked from first to sixth will participate in the World Championship, because those who qualify for the Paralympics are the top eight in each weight category at the global level.”
He added: “We conducted tests in February, and some players were excluded from the team. We also conducted a test for players in the national championship, but no one achieved the required numbers. We did a lot of experiments and gave players more opportunities to achieve the required numbers.”
Salah continued: “Our goal is to return to achieving medals and good results, by selecting players well and taking the selection seriously, providing good training, and promoting competition between them for the World Championships and the Paralympics. There is a certain number that each team participates with, and we are not against anyone, but there is a law that governs us. Certainly, there are parents who want to see their sons and daughters in the national team , and they submit complaints.”
He continued: “The state has provided equality between the healthy and the disabled in everything, and provides all support and assistance to players. The Egyptian Paralympic Committee headed by Dr. Hossam Eldin Mustafa also supports teams, but the clubs in Egypt have a problem and they do not have the capabilities, although the real base for a good Paralympic team are the clubs. Therefore, we want the ministry and the state to pay attention to the disabled clubs.”
The Paralympic Powerlifting coach concluded: “There are more than 100 clubs in Egypt for people with disabilities, and they participate in the national championships, but they do not have the capabilities. Sports for people with disabilities are real sports, not for entertainment.”
