MEDANY Aya

Personal Information

Family Husband Abbas Mahmoud, son Younis

Residence Cairo, EGY

Occupation Athlete, Politician, Teacher's Aide

Languages Arabic, English

License number 20111988001

Club

Upcoming Events

Sport Specific Information

When and where did you begin this sport? She began fencing at age 14.

Why this sport? "My parents, who are agricultural engineers, encouraged me to play sports and saved money so I could get into a club and try various sports."

Club / Team El Shams Sporting Club: Cairo, EGY

Handedness Right

General Interest

Nicknames Hawafrit, Lolo (UIPM, 18 Jul 2012; Athlete, 14 Jul 2003)

Memorable sporting achievement Winning gold at the 2018 African Championships in Tunis, Tunisia. (Athlete, 22 Aug 2018)

Most influential person in career Her father. (UIPM, 18 Jul 2012)

Hero / Idol British modern pentathlete Georgina Harland. (UIPM, 25 Jun 2004)

Injuries She sustained a pelvic injury in 2011. (weekly.ahram.org.eg, 01 Mar 2013)

In 2003 she broke her nose after falling off her horse in Szekesfehervar, Hungary. (Athlete, 14 Jul 2003)

Awards and honours She received the 2014 International Olympic Committee [IOC] Women in Sport Award for Africa. (olympic.org, 09 Dec 2014)

Other sports She represented Egypt in modern pentathlon at the Olympic Games in 2004, 2008 and 2012. (SportsDeskOnline, 12 Jul 2018; insidethegames.biz, 05 Jun 2018)

Milestones She became the youngest athlete to compete in modern pentathlon at the Olympic Games, following her participation at the 2004 Games in Athens at age 15 years and 281 days. (SportsDeskOnline, 12 Jul 2018; nbcolympics.com, 01 Jul 2008)

Famous relatives Her father Dr Mahmoud Medany was a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which won the 2007 Noble Peace Prize for its work on climate change. (UIPM, 18 Jul 2012)

Ambitions To win a medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (sport.ahram.org.eg, 10 Jul 2018)

Other information FEMALE VOICE
She has been involved in projects aiming to change attitudes around women in sport. She says that receiving the International Olympic Committee [IOC] Women in Sport Award for Africa in 2014 allowed her to undertake work in this area. "This was the beginning of my second journey in sport, suddenly I had won a trophy and was given money to support a programme helping girls, the young generation and sport in general in my country. I felt that no one in Egypt understood the culture of sport, so my goal was to change attitudes. I went to 15 schools and reached more than 300 children and young people, teaching them fencing and shooting, and organising a competition about the Olympic Games and the Olympic movement. I want to change the sports culture in Egypt, and I hope to be an ambassador for female sports in my country." (olympics.com, 26 Nov 2020)

OCCUPATION
In January 2021 she was elected as a member of the Egyptian Parliament for a five-year term. "I was surprised, this is a huge responsibility and trust. It took me 48 hours to actually believe it. There are a lot of feelings that you cannot describe with words." She also works as a university lecturer assistant in Egypt. (uipmworld.org, 19 Jan 2021; Facebook profile, 05 May 2021; rosaelyoussef.com, 12 Jan 2021)

RETIREMENT AND RETURN
She retired from modern pentathlon in 2013 before returning to the sport in 2015. She began focusing on fencing in 2017. "I had a baby after I retired. My husband helped me make the decision to return to sport, so I could help young athletes and young women by giving motivational speeches and teaching them about the importance of sport. In my country it is unusual for a married woman with children to compete in sports. Essentially, you are regarded as too old. I chose to fight and change this culture. I teach married women by example, that nothing is impossible for them, even when they have children. I returned to sport after three years of retirement; marriage is not the end of life." (unesco.org, 09 Jul 2018)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
She has served as chair of the International Modern Pentathlon Union [UIPM] Athletes' Committee, and has been a member of International Olympic Committee [IOC] commissions. She has also volunteered at the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan. "I taught Syrian refugees there self-defence." (alwafd.news, 15 Jun 2020; uipmworld.org, 19 Jan 2021)