Egypt make history as first Arab and African team to reach women’s youth World Championship semi-finals

Egypt’s Under-18 women’s handball team have become the first Arab or African side to reach the semi-finals of the Women’s Youth World Championship, completing an unprecedented run to fourth place in Romania.

The achievement was sealed at the Arena in Bucharest, where Egypt’s players produced a string of notable victories against leading European and Asian opponents. They overcame Croatia and France in the group stage before dramatic wins over South Korea and Denmark, then swept aside China to secure a place among the world’s top four.

FilGoal.com spoke to three of the players who played central roles in the campaign: goalkeeper Gieda Kamel, playmaker Mirna Ashraf and right back Malak Amr, who was named the best right back in the tournament’s all-star team.

Mirna Ashraf: controlling the game

Ashraf described the team’s experience in Romania as important not only for their performances on court but also for the strong bond they developed away from competition.

“Living together with the national team was a wonderful experience because we spent all our time together, which directly helped strengthen the friendship and affection between us as team-mates and as one team,” she told FilGoal.com.

“Away from the court, we tried to create a joyful atmosphere and relieve the pressure, whether through friendly conversations, sitting together or even simple, spontaneous moments at our accommodation that brought smiles to our faces. Those small details were extremely important because they took us away from the intense pressure of the tournament and helped us enter every match with greater calm, peace of mind and self-confidence.”

As the team’s playmaker, Ashraf was responsible for reading the game and deciding how Egypt should attack against some of Europe’s strongest defences.

“The playmaker position requires constant mental focus,” she said. “I have to read the entire court, follow the movements of the opposing defence and, at the same time, choose between the best attacking options available.

“With experience and practice, I learned not to overthink or analyse too much, because decisions on the court have to be made quickly and decisively. I tried to identify weaknesses in the defence before the attack began while always being ready to carry out more than one tactical option.”

Ashraf also explained how she tried to keep the team composed when matches became tight.

“In those critical moments, the biggest challenge for me was maintaining my calm and emotional discipline, because any tension on my part could have affected the whole team,” she said.

“I kept talking to my team-mates and reminding them that we had reached that stage because of our hard work and complete belief in our abilities. We focused on dealing with each ball separately. Rather than becoming distracted by the overall score, our entire concentration was on winning the current attack and securing the next defensive phase.”

The semi-final run has also brought interest from clubs. Ashraf said she had received verbal approaches but was waiting for formal approval from her club and the federation before deciding her next move.

“Reaching the semi-finals proved that we are capable of competing and standing firm against the major forces in world handball,” she said. “The next challenge is to maintain this level and continue improving. We need more strong competition and greater experience on the court.

“I have received some professional offers, but I am waiting for official approval from the club and the federation to complete the next step. My ambition is to play abroad, compete at the highest level and gain new experience that will help develop my technical ability.

“I would like to thank the Egyptian supporters for their exceptional backing, which gave us tremendous energy. The state’s praise and honouring of the team also strengthened our feeling that our efforts were worthwhile and that representing our country is an honour. God willing, this achievement will be only the starting point towards winning titles in future competitions.”

Malak Amr earns individual recognition

Wearing number 66, Amr became one of Egypt’s most dangerous attacking players and was rewarded with a place in the tournament’s all-star team as the best right back.

“Being chosen as the best right back and included in the all-star team at the World Championship is an exceptional personal achievement for me,” she told FilGoal.com.

“It was a dream I had chased since childhood. Although my greatest ambition was to win the World Cup title, I am very proud of this individual award, thank God.”

Amr said Egypt’s opening victory over Croatia was a decisive moment in their progress through the tournament.

“Our first match against Croatia was the cornerstone of our campaign,” she said. “Beating an established European side gave us a huge amount of confidence and belief that we could go far in the competition and overcome any opponent.

“The series of tough friendly matches we played before the tournament also played an important part in preparing us for the World Championship atmosphere and the fast pace of playing matches one after another.”

Egypt eventually lost to Spain in the semi-finals before being beaten by Denmark in the match for third place. Amr attributed those defeats in part to the physical demands of the schedule.

“Our performance was affected by clear physical fatigue because of the succession of difficult matches without enough rest, especially as the Spain game came after the physically demanding battle against China,” she said.

“Despite that exhaustion, we fought until the final moments and stayed level with the world champions. As for the third-place match against Denmark, the circumstances were different from our first meeting. The Danish team had studied our style carefully, closed down the spaces and avoided the mistakes they had made in our earlier match in the main round. That made the second game more difficult and complicated for us.”

Amr added that interest in her services had increased following the tournament.

“After the tournament ended, many calls and professional offers came in,” she said. “I have a strong desire to play abroad and develop my technical and physical abilities in European arenas. I am waiting for the situation to become clearer so I can choose the offer that best suits my sporting future, God willing.”

Gieda Kamel: preparing for every opponent

Kamel was central to Egypt’s progress from the goal, producing saves at important moments and studying the shooting preferences and attacking patterns of their opponents.

“From the first moments of our opening match against Croatia, we felt on the court that we were about to create an exceptional achievement in this edition,” she said.

“The preparations for the tournament were not a matter of chance. We completed intensive training camps over two full months before it began, focusing on studying the shooting angles and attacking styles of the opposing teams. Coach Mariam played a major role in preparing and training us as goalkeepers to deal with this international challenge.”

Egypt met Denmark twice during the tournament, defeating them earlier in the competition before losing the bronze-medal match. Kamel said the players made a determined effort to recover quickly from the semi-final defeat by Spain.

“We analysed Denmark’s matches again and studied their plans before the bronze-medal game in a determined attempt to fight until the very end,” she said.

“After the semi-final against Spain, every player managed to maintain her psychological balance and mental focus so we could quickly close the page on the defeat, because of the great responsibility placed on us in that historic bronze-medal match.”

The players were deliberately shielded from outside reaction during the competition. Kamel revealed that the coaching staff took away their mobile phones to ensure they remained focused.

“In reality, we were completely isolated from social media throughout the tournament,” she said. “The coaching staff took our mobile phones away to guarantee the highest possible level of concentration, and they only passed on some messages of support and encouragement very carefully.

“When we got our phones back after the competition ended and saw the scale of the attention and the huge crowds that had followed our matches, we were overcome with indescribable happiness.”

Kamel said the team did not feel weighed down by pressure because the players were motivated by their enjoyment of handball and by their personal ambitions.

“We were not restricted by psychological pressure because we play handball out of passion and enjoy competing,” she said. “Every player had a higher goal she wanted to achieve.

“If I had the chance to go back to the first day, I would choose to replay the Spain and Denmark matches. I am completely certain that if we had played them again, the World Championship medal would not have slipped from our hands.”