Tunisian athletes ready for Beijing Olympics
2008-07-31
With the 2008 Summer Olympic Games set to begin in one week, Tunisian athletes are already in Beijing. This year, medal hopes are pinned on individual athletes such as star swimmer Oussama Mellouli.
By Mona Yahia for Magharebia in Tunis – 31/07/08
 [Getty Images] Tunisian swimmer Oussama Mellouli shows off his gold medal at an international competition in Australia. The athlete's compatriots have pinned their Olympic medal hopes on him at the Beijing Games. |
Tunisia's top young athletes are now in the Chinese capital of Beijing to take part in the 2008 Olympic Games from August 8th to August 24th.
Tunisia won two silver medals at the Atlanta Olympic Games in 1996 and 18 medals in Athens in 2004, including eight gold medals.
This year, 27 of Tunisia's finest have spent the past several months in training camps around the world, preparing to give their best athletic performances in China. Under the close watch of individual managers and Tunisia's various sports federations, the athletes have been honing their skills in athletics, boxing, fencing and swimming, wrestling, weightlifting, cycling, taekwondo and tennis.
"Our athletes have done a lot of preparations [at] training camps in Europe, Asia and several centres in Tunisia so that they may acclimate themselves to the weather," Tunisian Olympic Committee spokesperson Omar Guila told Magharebia. "Each athlete has a special work agenda in agreement with the technical manager of the federation he or she belongs to."
The number of Tunisian participants at the Beijing games is significantly lower this year, in large part because none of Tunisia's collective sports teams, such as football and handball, were able to qualify.
Tunisia's medal hopes this year lie on individual sportsmen and women.
The last athletes to join the Tunisian delegation were hurdles runner Hbiba Gribi, pole-vaulter Laila Youssef and tennis player Salima Safr.
Gribi and Youssef qualified during last-minute eliminations at athletics meets, while Safr received a wildcard invitation following a proposal by the Tunisian Olympic Committee to the International Tennis Federation.
Many Tunisians have their eyes on swimmer Oussama Mellouli, who has brought pleasure to his compatriots by winning a number of major international competitions.
"He is the hope of Arab and African swimming, and he enjoys huge capabilities," said Tunisian Swimming Federation President Abd Jalil Dachraoui. "We are attaching great hopes to Oussama Mellouli."
Sports journalist Kais Rguez told Magharebia: "Khelil Maouia may achieve positive results in weight lifting, or Naziha Hamza in wrestling."
"The Olympic Games are another level of preparations, and they represent a special level of contenders," he said.
Given that the opening ceremony is still days away, most Tunisian citizens are pre-occupied with summer weddings and festivals.
The country's interest in its top athletes will become clearer once the games get under way. The August 8th opening ceremony begins at 8:08:08 in Beijing.
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naoufel Posted 2008-08-03
Hi, I am a Tunisian citizen. I would just like to make a correction to the article titled “Tunisian athletes ready for Beijing Olympics”. In the article, you say, “Tunisia won two silver medals at the Atlanta Olympic Games in 1996 and 18 medals in Athens in 2004, including 8 gold medals.” This is completely wrong. In Atlanta, Tunisia only won one sole bronze medal and it was in boxing. As for Athens, we did not get a single medal. So, please, get well-informed before writing such an article. –Thank you
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