Exclusive: Egyptian fencer Ziad El-Sissy shares his Olympic dreams
Egyptian fencer Ziad El-Sissy dreams of medals while preparing for Paris 2024.
Courtesy of Ziad El Sissy
Ziad El-Sissy, a name that resonates in the world of fencing, has cut his name into the annals of sports history. Born in Cairo, Egypt, El-Sissy’s journey from a young boy in an athletic family to a world-renowned fencer is inspiring and compelling. With medals from the African and World Championships, the fencer is targeting the podium at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
El-Sissy’s early life was steeped in sports. With a father and brother who played basketball, sports were more than just a pastime—they were a way of life. However, it was his mother’s inclination towards individual sports that set El-Sissy on his path to fencing. “My mom was more into individual sports than team sports. So she made me try a lot of individual sports, and then fencing came up. She signed me up for it and said, ‘Go try it, it’s a very nice, classy sport.’ So that’s actually how I started fencing,” El-Sissy recounts.
From a young age, El-Sissy harbored dreams of becoming a world champion, a vision he shared with his father. Despite skepticism from others, his unwavering commitment to his goals has driven him forward. “People wouldn’t believe it when they asked me, ‘What do you want?’ I was like, I want to be a world champion. I want to get an Olympic medal. And you can see the look on their faces like, oh, okay. But it was a dream of me and my dad together since the beginning.”
He got close in Tokyo 2020, when the Egyptian saber team finished fifth overall, with El-Sissy himself finishing 14th in the individual event. 2023 and 2024 would see him win bronze and silver at the World Championship and the African Championship respectively, along with a team silver in the latter competition. Needless to say, he’s feverishly preparing for Paris this summer.
Ziad El-Sissy in training sessions. Courtesy of Ziad El-Sissy
The life of a professional athlete is demanding, and El-Sissy’s schedule is no exception. “My day starts around 7 am, I start doing physical training in the morning, then I go back home for a little rest and then I have a one-hour session of fencing, it’s either going to be a lesson or footwork, something like that. And then I take a break and then later in the day, around the evening, I have my main fencing practice, which is around three hours. And some days I have to add recovery or physical therapy,” he says. This demanding routine, six days a week, underscores the dedication required to compete at the highest levels.
El-Sissy emphasizes the importance of mental preparation in his sport. “The mental preparation for tournaments is a very hard thing, but I think you get better at it by experience. The more you compete and the more you gain experience, you think that you have gone through the same situation before and you know what you did wrong that time, so you try to remember what you did wrong and avoid it this time,” he explains. This mental fortitude has been a cornerstone of his success.
One of the pinnacles in El-Sissy’s career came just this year when he won his first Grand Prix in Seoul, Korea, a monumental achievement. “It was a dream not only for me but for every Egyptian fencer and everyone who started with fencing in Egypt. We dreamt of that moment. Like, are we ever going to see Egypt in the finals? Are we ever going to see the Egyptian flag and hear the Egyptian anthem at one of those big stages?” El-Sissy recalls. The Olympics beckon.
For aspiring athletes, El-Sissy’s advice is simple yet profound: “Never give up. Keep working hard. Have patience. You never know when your moment is coming.” His journey is a testament to the power of perseverance, resilience, and relentless pursuit of one’s dreams.
Ziad El-Sissy’s story is one of passion, dedication, and relentless pursuit of excellence. From the bustling streets of Cairo to the grand stages of international fencing, his journey inspires many and signifies the potential for Egyptian athletes on the global sports stage. El-Sissy not only embodies the spirit of a true champion but also paves the way for future generations of fencers in Egypt and beyond.
