World Cup 2024: Nigeria’s Oluwafemiayo, Mark open season in style in Sharm El Sheik

The curtains came down on the second World Cup of the season with new stars reigning supreme while seasoned stars stamped their dominance in Sharm El Sheikh.

As many as 249 athletes from 34 nations were in action over the last six days striving to gain ranking points in the qualification pathway to Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. The Sharm El Sheikh 2024 is the second of the five World Cups the athletes competed to improve their rankings in the Paralympic race. 

Overall, Nigeria finished on top with a total of 11 medals that had nine gold medals in the elite category, followed by the hosts Egypt with eight gold and Jordan with three.

Nigerian Strength

Having missed out the season opening Dubai 2024 World Cup, Nigeria produced a dominant performance, with their women athletes leading the show.

Among the ones who made the biggest impact was Paralympic champion Folashade Oluwafemiayo who broke an eight-year-old world record in women’s over 86kg with a lift of 161kg. The earlier record was set in Rio 2016 Paralympics by her compatriot Josephine Orji.

Oluwafemiayo, who made three successful lifts starting with 150kg, was followed by home athletes Nadia Ali and Amany Ali. 

Meanwhile, reigning world champion Onyinyechi Mark also made sure to begin the season on a rousing note as she equalled her own world record en route to the gold medal in the women's up to 61kg.

Mark, who had three successful lifts, lifted 146kg in her third attempt, equalling her world record mark set in Dubai 2023.     

Oluwafemiayo and Mark’s fellow lifter Thomas Kure, a World Championships bronze medallist in Dubai 2023, too put up a brilliant effort to beat home favourite Sherif Osman in the men's up to 65kg. 

Sherif, the three-Paralympic gold medallist and world record holder in men’s -54kg and -59kg weight categories, managed 186kg for the bronze while Kure took the title with an effort of 202kg.

Khattab’s dominance

Among other prominent names in action was Jordan’s Paralympic star and world champion Abdelkareem Khattab who looked strong in his season-opening competition. He opened with 240kg, way above others in the field of men’s up to 97kg, a category in which he holds the world record of 255kg.

He however faltered in his world record attempt of 256kg, settling for 240kg and the gold medal. 

Khattab's fellow lifter, Omar Qarada, also a Tokyo 2020 Paralympic champion, opened the season with a golden effort of 176kg in men’s -49kg. 

Among others, Iraq’s Rasool Mohsin continued his winning show taking the gold in men's -80kg with 215kg effort.

Ahmed leads medals charge

For the hosts, it was their women stars who put the nation on the top of podium on several occasion with Paralympic and world medallist Rehab Ahmed leading the charge with the gold in women's up to 55kg.

Ahmed, the reigning world champion and holder of world record in the category, lived up to the home expectation, lifting 125kg for the gold - though it was nine kilos below her world record mark set in Cairo 2023.

Among other successful home players were Safaa Hassan (132kg) who overcame Nigeria’s reigning world champion Kafila Almaruf in women's up to 73kg, while Randa Mahmoud’s 135kg was way better than Nigeria’s Paralympic silver medallist Loveline Obiji (117kg) for the women’s up to 86kg gold medal. 

In men’s event, Paralympic medallist Mohamed Elelfat claimed the gold for Egypt lifting 224 kg in men's up to 88kg.

Complete results from the Sharm El Sheikh 2024 World Cup can be found here.

Next stop, Pattaya     

After Egypt, the World Cup action moves to Thailand for the Pattaya 2024 World Cup from 7 to 10 May as powerlifters continue their pursuit to improve rankings in the Paralympic qualification race.