President el-Sisi congratulates Egypt after historic U18 handball semi-final

President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has congratulated Egypt’s women’s under-18 handball team after they reached the semi-finals of the World Championship for the first time in the country’s history.

The Egyptian team secured its place in the last four with a dramatic 30-29 victory over China in the quarter-finals, surviving a tense final few minutes. Egypt led 17-13 at half-time before completing the narrow win.

Writing on his official Facebook account, President el-Sisi said: “Tribute to Egypt’s women’s handball team for reaching the semi-finals of the World Championship for women’s handball players for the first time, in another sporting achievement. I wish them success as they continue their journey in the tournament and achieve another feat that will bring joy to the Egyptian fans.”

The result marks a significant improvement on Egypt’s previous best performance in the women’s under-18 World Championship. That came in the 2022 tournament in North Macedonia, when Egypt finished seventh.

Egypt entered the quarter-final after an unbeaten run through the tournament’s group and main-round stages. The team finished top of its group with a perfect record, securing first place after defeating Denmark in its final group match.

In that game, Egypt edged Denmark 23-22. Earlier in the competition, the team beat Croatia 27-24 and followed that result with a 29-24 victory over France.

Egypt also recorded a commanding 83-17 win against Fiji before producing a memorable comeback against South Korea. The Egyptian side recovered to win that match 29-28.

The victory over Denmark completed Egypt’s group campaign with maximum points, while the team also ended the main round at the top of its section with a perfect record.

The squad selected for the tournament includes:

Goalkeepers: Jana Ahmed, Gaida Salama and Retag Mohamed.

Left wing: Gowairia Tamer and Mai Sherif.

Left back: Judy Metwally, Sondos Essam and Farah Farag.

Centre back: Mirna Ashraf, Reem Ehab and Yasmine Hassan.

Right back: Malak Amr, Mariam Salah and Habiba Mahmoud.

Right wing: Malak Khamis and Farida Abu El-Magd.

Pivot: Zeina Amr and Zeina Mahmoud.

Egypt’s semi-final appearance is the first by the country’s women’s under-18 team at the World Championship, surpassing the seventh-place finish achieved four years ago in North Macedonia.