Egypt hosted the Pan Arab Golf championship for juniors and women from 23 to 26 September 2019. The event, held in Cairo at the fields of Dreamland Golf Club, was organized by the Egyptian Golf Federation (EGF) headed by Ayman Hussein and witnessed the participation of ten Arab countries.
The countries participating in the Pan Arab Golf competition were the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Morocco, Tunisia, Libya, Somalia, Jordan, and Lebanon, as well as the host country Egypt, which competed in the women's competitions and the junior stages of the 13, 15, and 18 years.
The 13-year-old stage of the competition was held for the first time and was considered a new competition by the Arab Golf Federation. The introduction of this event was based on a proposal made by the vice president of the EGF and member of the executive office of the Arab Federation, Teymour Abou Elkheir, several months before the tournament to expand the youth base in the Arab world.
The Egyptian women's team included Dina Abou El Ela, Amina El Halawani, and Hanan Idris. The 13-year-old team was comprised of Teymour Rabie, Rani Al Taweel, and Ali Salama, the 15-year-old team was Mohamed Abou El-Ela, Ismail Abou El-Ata, and Bilal Karima, and the 18-year-old team was Adam El Shamy, Hassan Ezzedine, and Youssef Amr.
The opening ceremony of the tournament was held at Dreamland Golf Club in the presence of Assistant Minister of Youth and Sports Dr. Amr Haddad on behalf of Minister of Youth and Sports Dr. Ashraf Sobhy, the secretary general of the Egyptian Olympic Committee, President of the Modern Pentathlon Sherif El-Erian, Secretary General of the Arab Golf Federation Adel Al-Zarouni, and the vice president of the EGF . Also present were Teymour Abou Elkheir, members of the board of directors Ghassan Qabbani and Mohamed Atallah, the director of the Dreamland Golf Club Dr. Hefny Hegazy, and heads of delegations participating in the tournament.
In his speech during the opening ceremony, Teymour Abou Elkheir welcomed the guests from the Arab world, wished everyone success, and announced the full, official support of the golf federation to President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi in all his steps in the political leadership of the country.
Sharif Al-Erian, Adel Al-Zarouni, and Hefni Hijazi also delivered speeches in which they welcomed the participating delegations and wished everyone success in the competitions and the best performance at all levels.
After the welcoming speeches, an artistic performance was held by one of the folklore troupes, which shared some Egyptian folklore.
After the opening ceremony, Secretary General of the Olympic Committee and President of the Modern Pentathlon Sherif El-Erian praised the efforts of the golf federation in organizing and hosting the Arab Junior Championship.
Sherif El-Erian held a meeting with the players of the Egyptian national team in order to motivate them in the presence of Teymour Abou Elkheir, Ghassan Qabbani, and Mohamed Atallah, demanding that they focus and make the most effort to compete strongly for Pan Arab Golf and win the title.
Teymour Abou Elkheir thanked Sherif El-Erian for the invitation to meet with the players in order to motivate them.
From the first day, the Arab Junior Golf and Women's Championship witnessed fierce competition among five countries, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, the UAE and Oman, to win the junior titles for stages 13-years, 15-years, 18-years, and women.
Morocco led the junior 13, 15, and 18-year-old competitions and came third in the women's stage, while Tunisia lead the women's and under 18 competitions.
After the first round of the tournament, Egypt finished second in the under 18 competition with a team consisting of Adam El Shami, Hassan Ezz El Din, and Youssef Amr, third in the under 13 stage with team Timor Rabi, Rani El Taweel, and Ali Salama. The under 15 stage team consisted of Mohamed Abou El Ela, Ismail Abou El Atta, and Bilal Karima. The UAE came in second in the women's competition and under 13 competition, while coming in fourth in the under 15 and 18 stages. The Omani team came second in the under 15 stage and fourth in the under 13.
Morocco continued to dominate on the second day, looking to secure the gold medal in the three youth stages, while Tunisia sought the women's title.
With the final turn in the third round of the tournament, Morocco was officially crowned champion of stages 13, 15, and 18, while Tunisia won the women's title. The Pharaohs took second place in stages 13, 15 and 18 and fourth in the women's competition.
Egypt’s juniors’ team, composed of Adam El Shami, Hassan Ezz El Din, and Youssef Amr, managed to win the title for the 18 stage. Adam El Shamy succeeded in securing third place in the individual competitions.
In the 15-year competition, Mohamed Abou El Ela, Ismail Abou El Atta, and Bilal Karima presented outstanding performance and took second place with a one-stroke lead over Oman, who came third.
In the first under 13 junior tournament, players Timor Rabi, Rani El Taweel, and Ali Salama managed to get second place, while the UAE team came third. Timur Rabi came in fourth in the individual competition with only a one-stroke difference from the third player, Oman’s Oman Busaidi.
At the closing ceremony, the awards were presented by Secretary General of the Arab Golf Federation Adel Al-Zarouni and Vice President of the Golf Federation Teymour Abou Elkheir. Each congratulated the winners and saluted all of the players participating in the tournament in the presence of the members of the board of directors Ghassan Qabbani and Mohamed Atallah. The veteran Arab champion Amr Abou El Ela supported Egypt as his daughter competed with the women and his youngest son Mohammed with the 15-year-old team.
On the sidelines of the closing ceremony, Adel Al-Zarouni awarded veteran coach Sherif Abou El-Kheir with the medal of the personal year of sports in Arab golf as one of the symbols of Arab and Egyptian sports amid applause from all attendees.