Ayman Galal is undoubtedly the star player of the Egyptian national team heading to the 2024 GAMMA World Championships in December to represent his country in MMA in the 74.9kg category.
Indeed, the four-time Kung Fu World Champion has been honoured by the President of Egypt. With accolades spanning Kung Fu and Combat Sambo, the star has medalled too in four World Cups and stands as nine-time African Champion and three-time Arab Champion. His MMA career to date encompasses three professional wins and one loss across UAE Warriors and BRAVE CF.
Born in 1991, Ayman hails from a humble, rural background in which he excelled in sport from childhood, dreaming of a professional career in sport. He eventually embarked on his dream through Kung Fu when he dropped out of his medical studies to enter the Military School of Sports. From that day on, the athlete never looked back.
In contrast to the veteran, is the younger Dalia Abodeff competing in the women’s divisions at 47,6 Kg. Indonesia will provide the platform for Abodeff’s second World Championships outing and the opportunity for her to build on last year’s silver medal. In 2024, she went on to win an Olympic gold medal in MMA at the 2023 African Games (held in March), which she described as an ‘an unforgettable moment’ and ‘extraordinary feeling’. Dalia’s success drew attention from international media and matchmakers alike, as the athlete made the front cover of Dubai’s City Times.
The twenty-three-year-old’s journey into MMA began at the age of fourteen after moving to Cairo, where she gained the opportunity to experience wrestling. Inspired by watching the broadcasts of MMA’s big leagues, she eventually transitioned to the sport having tested herself across various martial arts disciplines. From there, Abodeff’s progression has undoubtedly taken vast amounts of grit and determination, as she alluded to in her interview with the Khaleej Times on championing in Africa:
“Behind the scenes of success… lies a great deal of hard work, persistence, and discipline….When you hear your name called out in first place as a champion, you forget all the hard times. Achieving ‘success’ and ‘winning’ are challenging words but fundamental for any person in the world who aspires to the life of a champion.”
The national squad boasts yet further accoladed names among its 17 man-and-woman squad, set to compete across MMA and Striking MMA: Abdelfattah Ahmed (120,2+ Kg), 2023 World Bronze MMA medallists and 2023 World Silver Striking MMA medallist; Abdelrhman Gad (-93,0 Kg), 2023 World Bronze Striking MMA medallist and 2023 World #5 in MMA; Mohamed Elgabry (120,2- Kg), 2023 World Bronze MMA and Striking MMA medallist.
Egypt’s line-up of champions and medallists will certainly not only inspire the squad (listed below), but also the team hopefuls coming up in their wake. Indeed, this month’s national training camp organised by the national federation drew 500 participants from across the country, as proudly reported by President Mohamed Ibrahim Abdelltif.
Thus, the Egyptian Muaythai and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Federation is not just set to make another statement at the international level in Indonesia, but is also successfully propelling the sport’s growth nationally at the grassroots.
Team Egypt
ABDELAZIZ MOHAMED Men -83,9 Kg, MMA
ABDELFATTAH AHMED Men 120,2+ Kg, MMA
ABDELRHMAN GAD Men -93,0 Kg, MMA
AHMED FISAL Men -56,7 Kg, MMA
ALAAELDIN NABILA Women 72,6+ Kg, Striking MMA
AMER ELSHNSHOURY Men -70,3 Kg MMA
AYMAN GALAL Men -74,9 Kg MMA
AYMAN HOSSAMELDIN Men 120,2- Kg, Striking MMA
DALIA EBRAHIM ABODEFF Women -47,6 Kg, MMA
FAHIM NADA Women -52,2 Kg, Striking MMA
HEGAZY MONZER U16 Boys -50 Kg, MMA
HATEM JOUDY U18 Girls -72,6 Kg, MMA
JESEEN MEDHAT U18 Boys -61,2 Kg, MMA
KHALED MAI Women -72,6 Kg, Striking MMA
MOHAMED MOSTAFA Men 102,1- Kg, Striking MMA
MOHAMED ELGABRY Men 120,2- Kg, MMA
OMAR KHALED 07 Men 120,2- Kg MMA
The 2024 World Championships is set to take place between the 6 to 14 December at Banten’s Dewa MMA Arena and will be live streamed internationally. Tickets are on sale at: https://bit.ly/GAMMAWC2024.
Follow:
Ayman Galal on Facebook and Instagram
Dalia Abodeff on Instagram
