Every four years, all eyes are on the Olympians: men and women determined to be the fastest, strongest and best in their chosen sports. Those who stand atop the podium, medals glittering around their necks, are the gold standard of physical perfection and athletic prowess. A victory for the athletes is a victory for the nation, and the Olympians are welcomed home as heroes.

There is another group of athletes patiently waiting their turn in the spotlight. Like the Olympians, they have trained all their lives for this moment, and they are no less determined to succeed. The only difference: They are out to achieve athletic perfection with imperfect bodies. They are the Paralympians.

Despite the amazing performances — even more impressive given the physical and mental disabilities the athletes must overcome — the colorful characters and the careening craziness of events such as wheelchair basketball, the Paralympics receives little national or international media coverage. Every four years, Egypt’s Paralympians come home decked in medals to quiet airports and fleeting fame. While they would enjoy the recognition, these athletes are not in it for the gold and the glory — they compete for themselves.

Organized by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), based in Düsseldorf, Germany, the Paralympics are held one month after the mainstream Olympics, hosted by the same city. The 2008 Paralympic Games take place September 6–17 in Beijing.

While many assume ‘para’ refers to ‘paralyzed,’ the Greeks used the prefix ‘para’ to mean ‘by the side of.’ The Paralympics run parallel to the Olympics as the pinnacle of sports for disabled athletes.

Khaled Habib Mohamed Beshta: Ready for his second Games

The IPC oversees international competitions for the disabled in 27 sports, with competitors classified by the type of disability: amputees, cerebral palsy, visual impairment, spinal cord injuries, intellectual disabilities and ‘les autres’ (others), which encompasses conditions not fitting into the other five categories.

While Olympic-style games for the disabled started in Toronto in 1960, the first official games were held in 1976 with the Winter Paralympics in Sweden. Summer and winter games have been held on the same Olympic schedule ever since.

In Egypt, the Paralympic athletes have racked up a success record that almost no other sports team can rival. The nation first fielded a Paralympic team in 1976, which returned with eight medals: five gold, two silver and one bronze. Egyptian athletes have won medals in the past eight consecutive Paralympic Games. In all, the national team has 159 Olympic medals to its credit: 38 gold, 50 silver and 71 bronze.

Fatma Omar is not your typical powerlifting champion. Besides the fact she participates in a male-dominated sport, she is also stricken with polio, the crippling viral disease that strips its victims of the ability to walk without support. But that is not stopping her from competing in her third Paralympic Games this summer.

Khaled Habib Repeat record-breaker Omar proves that powerlifting is one of Egypt’s strongest Paralympic sports.

At the 2000 Summer Games in Sydney, Omar took gold in the 44-kilogram weight class. Four years later at the Atlanta Games, she again won the gold medal, this time in the 56-kilogram class — and set a new world record in the process.

Before she was a record-setting world champion, Omar recalls, “I was lonely. I had no friends, no relationships and no life. I’ve always felt that I was an unaccepted figure in society because every time I went out, I saw that it was only me who was paralyzed and everyone else was normal.”

Her first encounter with disabled athletes was at age 19, when she saw the 1992 Barcelona Paralympics on television. She recalls thinking, “Why can’t I become like those players? I should reach the Paralympics and become beneficial to my society. And this was a real challenge.”

Not everyone in Omar’s family approved of her decision to take up sports. Her mother feared she would injure herself, but Omar found the support she needed in her father, who encouraged her to head out into the world and achieve everything she wanted.

Her first step was a visit to a club for paralyzed athletes headed up by a man known as Captain Emad. Emad saw immense drive and potential in Omar and suggested she try powerlifting. After two years of intense training, Omar was ready to compete.

Khaled Habib Track and field athlete Mohamed El-Sayed Abdel Kader trains with the discus.

After Omar’s first competitive victory, Emad informed her that no powerlifting championships for women would ever be held in Egypt or anywhere else in the world. “It was the shock of all shocks, and I was totally frustrated and felt that all this success was in vain,” says Omar. “When I decided to play sports, I did not intend to take part in local championships only, because I had a lot of energy. I wanted to be an international player taking part in the Paralympics and become like those I saw on television [that] day.”

Depression took hold and for the next two years, Omar stayed home, away from sports. One day, Emad called her to tell her that a national powerlifting team was to be formed to take part in a competition in Slovakia. An enthusiastic Omar went back into training, and in Slovakia, she won a gold medal, setting a new powerlifting record.

“My success in sports turned my life upside down. My ego was boosted, and my self-confidence greatly improved,” she recalls. “I was able to walk normally in the streets, make friends and forget about my paralysis because I was too busy to think about it.”

In 2002 Omar married and retired from powerlifting. Shortly after she gave birth to her son in 2003, the Egyptian Paralympic Committee (EPC) called to coax her out of retirement for the Atlanta games. Omar says her husband has been very supportive.

While Omar says she is thinking seriously of retiring after the 2008 Paralympics, she also hopes to be an inspiration for other disabled people, that her story and achievements will encourage them to break out of their own shells and embrace life.

Khaled Habib

“I’m terrified about the upcoming Paralympics,” she admits. “The more I win, the heavier becomes the responsibility. There is a famous quote that says ‘it is easy to reach the top, but it is difficult to remain on top.’ I made top records and I want to keep it up.”

An automobile accident at the age of 14 took both of Mohammed Beshta’s legs and set him on the path to the Paralympics. Rather than focusing on what he lost, Beshta kept a positive outlook and considers the years before the tragic accident a gift.

“I have tasted walking normally and being paralyzed,” he says, “I feel that my situation is better than those born with paralysis because I lived 14 years being able to walk on my legs. When I learned after the accident that I wouldn’t walk again and I would use a wheelchair, I did not panic at all.”

Along with teammates Mahmoud El-Attar, Hossam Abdel Kader and Mohammed El-Sayed Abdel Kader, Beshta competes in track and field — a sport in which Egypt’s Paralympians excel, along with powerlifting. Beijing will be Beshta’s second games, and he hopes to improve on his sixth-place finish in Athens.

Beshta believes that he would not have been successful in any other occupation but sports, listing the team spirit, opportunities to meet other athletes and staying active as his personal motivators. “I realized that playing sports is the key to boost my ego and overcome my paralysis,” he says. “Sports are magical.”

Fayza Hafez is feeling the pressure: She is one of four Paralympians representing Egypt in table tennis, a sport traditionally dominated by the host country China. This is the first time the national team is participating in the sport, with four players qualified.

“We are so busy — 90 percent of our time is dedicated to sports and camps,” says Hafez, whose mobility is limited by polio. “We can’t think of anything else until after we finish the championship — before it we just think and dream of ping pong.”

Hafez was drawn to sports after seeing disabled athletes on television and hasn’t looked back since. She says that at first her family was not very supportive of her aspirations, but they’ve come to encourage her pursuit of the gold medal. The road will not be easy though, as the team will be competing against the best of the best from Russia, Poland and China.

“I’ve played in African championships and world championship, but it is my first time in Paralympics and it feels really different,” says Fayza. “I am terrified. I’ve met my competitors before in other championships, but the Paralympics is broader [and] the competition is stronger.”

Omar, Beshta and their fellow Paralympians are backed by the EPC, which coordinates the national teams in 12 sports for international competitions, as well as hosting local and national competitions for disabled athletes.

“Egypt was one of the pioneers paying attention to the sports for the paralyzed,” says Dr. Nabil Salem, head of the EPC. “The EPC was established [in 1979,] before the IPC, so it is considered one of the oldest committees for Paralympics in the world.”

Salem sees the EPC not just as an organizer but also an advocate for disabled athletes. “We try to create Paralympics awareness by all means,” says Salem. “For instance, there is a championship in Ismailia for governorates in a few months. We currently have 9,000 players, but we want more because playing sports and getting into teams dramatically changes their lives.”

Before it can change lives, the EPC has to change minds. “It’s physicians, they are the main obstacle,” Salem says. “They have a huge influence on the paralyzed and continue to convince them that they still need treatment,”

Bluntly, the EPC head places the responsibility for change — both personal and in society — on the disabled themselves. “I blame the paralyzed in the first place. [] They insist on remaining in a closed shell away from people, so the government will never actually see the emergency. They have to unite and appear [in society] more.”

Certainly the Paralympians are going out and appearing in society, but society hasn’t seemed to notice.

The athletes say that a major challenge is the general treatment of the disabled, who are generally assumed to be beggars. Accessibility is also a problem: There is little public transportation that can accommodate the disabled, and crowded, poorly paved streets and sidewalks make it virtually impossible to get around.

Salem points to a recent conference for the disabled as an example, noting that many of the hotels did not have proper facilities for the disabled.

Ironically, the Paralympic team faces a very different challenge.

“[Sponsors] tell us that they don’t support us, because we are already excellent and in no need of support,” Hafez says. “On the other hand, the normal athletes, who do not achieve medals or break records, need their support. [But] these are unconvincing answers.”

Getting the recognition they desire will not come easy for Egypt’s Paralympians, who are in competition not just against other Olympians, but Egypt’s national sport.

“When the national football team won the African Cup of Nations, there were parties in streets,” says Beshta. “I was sitting here really heartbroken. It is not that I’m envying the national football team, but I felt extremely unappreciated because I achieved the exact same thing and reached outstanding results, but no one ever heard about it.”

The one entity that is paying attention, according to Salem, is the government, which supports the EPC alongside the Ministry of Youth and Sports. “The government spends money on national teams men taa’ taa le salamo alaikom [a proverb meaning ‘from A to Z’], and in international competitions, mainly the Paralympics, the government does not charge a penny to the team.”

But despite this, it is an uphill battle for Egypt’s Paralympic team. With one of the strongest ever delegations attending the Beijing Games, perhaps success will help some of Egypt’s finest athletes gain the recognition they deserve.

“We want Egypt to become a friend to the paralyzed,” says Salem.

When you see how much the Paralympians — and all those with disabilities — can accomplish, that’s not so much to ask.

Beijing Bling

FOR MONTHS NOW, couch potatoes, sports enthusiasts and the athletes themselves have been waiting impatiently for the start of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. The modern version of the Ancient Greek event, held every four years, is the only game in town from August 8_24, and even our favorite footballers are likely to be glued to the tube.

Media momentum has been building from the first flicker of the Olympic torch as the final countdown to one of the few truly global spectacles, a forum for both nationalistic competition and global unity, begins.

China, a first-time host for the event, has been many years in planning this major foray onto the world stage. The nominally Communist country has employed extraordinary — and often controversial — measures in preparation for what is probably the largest influx of international sporting fans, teams and tourists the country has ever seen. From opening three new subway lines, cracking down on illegal scalpers, thinning out the city’s normally dense traffic and the forced eviction of thousands of unwanted residents, Beijing has gone all out preparing for the games.

Egypt’s involvement in the Olympics dates back to 1920, when the country made its debut at Antwerp, Belgium, the start of a steady participation of Egyptian Olympians for the next 88 years.

Up until the last games, however, the results had often been less than golden or silver or even bronze, for that matter. In 2004, the nation was finally able to celebrate as four Egyptians took the podium in Athens, breaking a 20-year medal drought. Can we expect the same bling from Beijing?

Egypt is sending an impressive delegation of 99 athletes and 77 trainers and administrative officials covering 24 sports to the Beijing Olympics. Among them is 29-year-old Greco-Roman wrestler Karam Gaber, who was the darling of 2004: the first Egyptian athlete to win an Olympic gold in 56 years.

Gaber took down silver medalist Mehmet Ozal in just one minute and nine seconds during his 11-0 semi-final win in 2004. He also beat world champion Ramaz Nozadze three times in a 12-2 decision which took a little over three minutes. Not only did he claim the 2004 gold medal but he brought home silver at the 2003 World Championships.

While Gaber has suffered some recent injuries, including one to his shoulder, many commentators expect that he is ready to shine again in 2008. And he won’t be alone — Gaber is accompanied by new wrestling teammates Hussein Baker, Mohamed Heikel and Yasser Ramadan, who will be wrestling at 69, 75 and 81 kilograms, respectively.

Outside the wrestling ring, the nation’s next most-promising medal prospect is Aya Medany, attending her second Olympics in the Modern Pentathlon. “I feel confident, insha’allah,” Medany says, “and my performance now is better than back in 2004.”

Indeed it is. At press time Medany was second in New Balance World Pentathlon ranking, just two points away from the number-one spot. The 20-year-old has posted a number of stellar performances in modern pentathlon competitions, including first place at both the 2007 World Cup Championships and the 2007 African Championships. She placed second in the 2008 World Cup Championships.

Medany is joined in Beijing by teammates Amr El-Geziri (ranked 78) and Omnia Fakhry (ranked 41).

The Egyptian handball team is also in Beijing, securing their third attendance at the games with their win over Tunisia in the African Cup. The team includes a number of members with Olympic experience, including Hamada Al-Nakib, Hussein Zaki, Hany Al-Fakharany, Mohamed Mustafa Al-Ahmar, Mohamed Resha, Hussein Youssry and Belal Awad.

The national volleyball team got its ticket to China after beating Algeria in a two-hour long, five-set match in South Africa, capturing the title of African champions in the process. The team includes captain Hamdy As-Safi, Mohamed Fathi, Ahmad Salah, Hossam Al-Sha’rawi and Ashraf Abu Al-Hassan.

Veteran squash players Amr Shabanna and Rami Ashour are also representing Egypt at the games. Ranked number one world-wide by the Professional Squash Association at press time, Shabanna won the squash World Opens in 2003, 2005 and 2007. Ashour, ranked fourth, won his first international title in 2004, when at just 16 he became the youngest player ever to win the Men’s World Junior Squash Championship, which he won again in 2006.

Several table-tennis players are in the lineup, including Ahmad Saleh, Sayed Lasheeh, Adel Mos’ad and Noha Youssri, who will take the place of Shaimaa Abdel Aziz. They face a great wall of competition, as host country China has dominated the sport since 1988.

In track and field, keep an eye out for runner Omar Ibrahim high jumper Ahmed Lotfy and gavel thrower Omar Al Ghazaly.

In what has been one of Egypt’ strongest events — weightlifting — Mohamed Abdel Tawab, Tarek Yehia Fouad, Mahmoud Feisal, Abdel Rahman Mohamed and Abeer Abdel Rahman are hoping to carry on the winning tradition. Taekwondo, another successful sport for Egypt, features Noha Safwat Abdel’al, while the strong boxing squad has some new names including Ramadan Abdel Ghafar, Hossam Bakr and Mohamed Heikal.

Hopes are high, but whatever the medal results, representing the country among the world’s sporting elite is reason enough for Egypt to be proud of these athletes.et