Athletes with disabilities are the stars that shone in the sky of Moroccan sports in 2022.

This year, Moroccan athletes shone in a disabled situation and managed par excellence to win the respect and appreciation of trekkers after achieving notable results in various international and continental sports competitions, and some of them even managed to break world records.

Behind these achievements stood heroes armed with a strong will and determination to prove themselves and find their foothold on the Moroccan sports map. Thus, the Moroccan athletes who participated in the 6th Moulay El Hassan International Athletics Meeting for the Disabled in September in Marrakesh managed to break two world records.

Champion Ayoub Sadni broke the world record in the 400 meters T-47 (men), after completing the race in a time of (46 seconds, 93 minutes), while his compatriot Zakaria Al-Derham broke the world record in shot put – F33 with thrown .12.38 meters.

Also, many Moroccan athletes managed to achieve the minimum qualifications for the World Championship (Paralympic Games) – Paris 2023. At this international forum, Morocco took third place with 48 medals (10 gold, 16 silver and 22 bronze), behind Brazil and Iran. . And the Paralympic champion, Zakaria Al-Derham, grabbed the gold medal in June by breaking the African record in the shot put competition in his category, within the Grand Prix of Paris, France.

Champion Hind Fariwa dedicated her brilliance to international and continental competition, winning the gold medal in the javelin throw and breaking the world record (21.31 m) in the same competitions. Paralympic champion Ezzedine Nouiri did not break his promise even in Paris, winning the silver medal in the shot put competition (10.81 m), together with Yusra Karima who won silver in the discus throw (37.03 m).

This achievement was added to that achieved by Frioua during the Tunis International Athletics Forum Handicap Grand Prix in Brades, after she managed to achieve a new world record for the javelin event. Fariwa set a world record for the category (Fa 31) after recording a throw of 20.49m (previous world record: 20.45m).

In the same way, Fawzia Al-Kassiwi won a gold medal in the javelin throw with 14.28 m and the same amount in the shot put (7.41 m) at the same Grand Prix in Tunisia.

In the sport of bocce, the Moroccan national team finished the first African championship in that game, which was held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in second place behind the host country, after winning four medals (2 gold, 1 bronze and 1 silver). .

Two gold medals went back to Mohamed Buehlaben and Nadia Ihra, thus securing their place at the World Championships. Imad Wajih won the silver medal, while Nabil Marzouk grabbed the bronze medal. Bocce is intended for athletes with severe disabilities, and is similar to the sport of petanque, and is played sitting down with iron or plastic balls.

Among the achievements of the sport of people in a position is to prevent the Moroccan national team from reaching the quarter-finals of the World Championship for people with amputations (1-4) in its first participation, after losing to the host country, Turkey, at the (TF-F Riva) stadium. ) in Istanbul.

The Moroccan national team took fifth place in the world ranking, first in the Arab world and second in Africa, after defeating the Brazilian national team two to nothing in the standings match. Swimming, on the other hand, topped the podium twice at the Open Paralympic Swimming Championships in Cairo in November, after Mohamed Reda Dikwan won a silver medal in the 100m backstroke and a silver medal in the 200m medley. In the sport of powerlifting, Morocco was also decorated with two medals at the African Championship for the match in Cairo, silver won by Halima Lamkhanter and bronze by Al-Lyassin Al-Ankouri.

As usual in all international forums in which Moroccan Special Olympics winners participate, Moroccan athletes shined during many international events, including, in particular, the participation of the Moroccan United Men’s Soccer Team in the final of the Special Olympics World Cup for the match, which took place in July in Detroit , Michigan, USA.

The water polo team of Morocco of the Special Olympics also participated in the fourth edition of the International Water Polo Tournament organized by the Hungarian Embassy in Rabat. Participation in this sporting event, hosted by the Moroccan Skateboarding Club in Rabat, is part of the annual program of participation of Olympic champions in various national and international competitions during the current year, especially in the field of communication and community. the integration that the Olympics wants to achieve through sports.

Source: agencies