What are Egyptians good at these days, anyway? Many things; plenty for Egypt to be proud of. The legacy of ancient Egyptian talent lives on today, and in the following fields, Egypt seems to always come out on top.
Squash
If there’s one thing that Egyptians are fantastic at, it’s squash – and not just on a local level, but internationally as well. For years, Egypt has dominated at the World Open, the biggest squash tournament in the world, with eight out of the past 13 winners coming from Egypt. In the U.S., Egyptian men have won the most recent three Intercollegiate Individual Championships.
On Sept. 1, 26 year old Alexandrian Raneem El Welily claimed the Professional Squash Association (PSA) title for #1 women’s squash player in the world, making her the first Egyptian woman to ever be globally ranked as #1 in any sport.
Why are Egyptians so good at squash? They say it has something to do with the popularization of squash in Egypt during British imperial rule, and perhaps the exceptional Egyptian ability to react quickly in life threatening situations (i.e. there’s a ball coming at your face and nowhere to run).
Diving
It’s no secret that Egypt’s Red Sea is home to some of the most sought-after dive spots in the world. But did you know that two of the most prestigious Guinness World Record titles for diving are held by Egyptians? In late 2014, Egyptian diver and ex-special forces officer Ahmed Gabr broke the record for the world’s deepest scuba dive, with a 332.35 m plunge in Dahab. Gabr earned another title this June for organizing the world’s largest underwater clean up in Hurghada, with 614 divers participating.
Also in June, Egyptian diver Walaa Hafez set a new Guinness World Record for the longest open saltwater scuba dive, staying underwater for a whopping 51 hours and 20 minutes, an operation that involved extensive planning to maintain nutrition and avoid decompression sickness.
Weightlifting
Egypt has won five Olympic gold medals in weightlifting, along with two silver and two bronze. In 2014, the Egyptian Paralympic weightlifting team brought home four world records, 12 medals (four gold, six silver and two bronze) and a second place title from the IPC Power Lifting World Championships.
Chemistry
Egyptian scientist Ahmed Zewail, the “father of femtochemistry”, won the 1999 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his groundbreaking work in the field. Femtochemistry is the study of chemical reactions measured across femtoseconds, a field pioneered by Zewail that now allows scientists to understand the details behind even the quickest, previously indiscernible reactions. He has won dozens of other prestigious international awards for his research.
Social media
Egypt already leads the Middle East region with the highest percentage of internet users (40 million, representing approximately 50% of the total population). The country also has the highest number of social media users, with 520,000 on Twitter and 22 million on Facebook, representing a quarter of the total number of Arabs on social media. Egyptians, compared to other populations in the Middle East, were found to be more likely to use social media for instant messaging and posting status updates.
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