SME – By Mohamed El-Goker
My first visit to Cairo was in November 1988, although my connection with Egyptians began in childhood through films, magazines, matches, and sports commentary. This connection deepened during my school years and later with media colleagues since the 1970s, and has continued to grow and develop, praise be to God. Egyptians are indispensable; they are an integral part of Arab cultural and media memory.
In “the Mother of the World” (Egypt), I met the late giant of sports journalism, Nassef Selim, a sports news correspondent from Egypt, despite his considerable influence at the time as president of both the Egyptian and African Volleyball Federations. Had it not been for the language barrier, he would undoubtedly have won the presidency of the International Federation. Nassef Selim was a shining name in the world of sports journalism, a graduate of Al-Azhar University, and possessed a commanding presence and sharp intellect.
Through him, I met Professor Mohamed El-Hayawan, a giant of thought and opinion in Egyptian journalism, and a writer for the newspapers “Al-Gomhuria” and “Al-Wafd.” He passed away in 2000 at the age of 69 from a heart attack, after a distinguished career during which he covered most Arab, Islamic, and Gulf summit conferences. He had no interest in sports, but he was a polymath, kind, quick-witted, and possessed a captivating presence. I still remember our first meeting when he said, smiling, “I’m Al-Hayawan!”
Al-Hayawan graduated from the Faculty of Law in 1955 and worked for the Middle East News Agency and later Al-Gomhuria newspaper. He was renowned for his legal and economic writings and authored several literary works. My last meeting with him was in Kuwait after the liberation, as part of a group of Arab journalists invited by the Kuwaiti Ministry of Information.
In those early meetings I had with the late Nassef Selim and Mohamed Al-Hayawan, I realized the value of sitting with such prominent figures in journalism, figures who possessed life experience before their profession. You learn from them, benefit from their opinions, ideas, and witty remarks. They were a practical generation, far removed from the clamor of social media that steals our lives today, imposing new rules and regulations upon us daily. That generation worked with their hands, loved their craft with dedication, and were the true foundation for shaping our awareness and facing life.
Today, as we live in a raging football atmosphere, the sporting world anticipates significant events with the qualification of the Moroccan and Egyptian national teams for the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations, the most popular sport on earth, enjoyed by everyone from presidents and leaders to ordinary people. A game full of paradoxes and wonders, into which budgets of billions of dollars are poured.
Our wish is that the champion of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations will be an Arab team, now that we are on the verge of lifting the trophy in Morocco, a country that has dazzled the world with exceptional organization, making this edition one of the best tournaments in the history of the African continent.
