Transcript item
Jo: Hello, Maged. Nice to see you.
Maged: Hello, Jo. Nice to see you too, Jo.
Jo: Well, I'm really excited that you're talking to me today, Maged, about the Olympic and Paralympic Games, which are starting quite soon. And I'm really honoured, actually, to be speaking to you, because you are an ex-Paralympic swimmer. That's right, isn't it?
Maged: Yes, that is right. Thanks to you too, because you took me as an idol for the episode of yours.
Jo: Tell me, Maged. How and when did you start swimming?
Maged: So, the story started after I had polio, in my left leg, and I had to do an aqua-physiotherapy. Yeah. And the therapists sees that it would be good to join a swimming team, instead to do a physiotherapy session. Or physiotherapy, yeah? So, I joined, I joined the team when I had ten years old, yeah, and did training and still training until I officially joined the national Egyptian team when I was 16.
Jo: OK, and in the – you sent me an article to read – and if I remember rightly, you were 17 when you competed in the Paralympic Games.
Maged: Yeah, that was in Seoul Olympics. That was in 1998, er 1988, sorry.
Jo: 1988, yeah.
Maged: And I was the youngest player in Egyptian delegation, yeah?
Jo: Wow, amazing!
Maged: Actually, it was amazing because it was my first travelling abroad on that time, yeah? So my feeling was, on that time I had a mixed feeling, between ecstatic and amazing and surprised, because I wasn't went to the airport before. It was my first time. So, it spring to my mind, where I will, how I will claim my luggage, which terminal …
Jo: All sorts of practical things you were worried about. But what were your feelings of competing? How did you feel? Were you nervous about swimming in the competitions?
Maged: Yes, the day before competition I was. It was very hectic day, yeah, and I didn't slept well. Yeah, because …
Jo: I can imagine!
Maged: Yeah, because it was my first official competition for me. And you know what's the meaning of Olympic Games.
Jo: Yeah, it's huge.
Maged: So, my start was big enough because, I still young. I got 17, 16. And it was my first experience, so it was unforgettable experience.
Jo: I'm sure, Maged. And how did you do? How did you do in your competitions?
Maged: I participated in three competitions. If I remember well it was 100 freestyle, 100-metre freestyle, and 200-metre individual medal, yeah, and 100-metre backstroke.
Jo: Right, OK.
Maged: And it was good for me, and my coach told me that it will be good for you to achieve the final. The final will be from one to eight.
Jo: And did you?
Maged: Yeah, and I did. I got a place, or a rank, between seven and eight in the three competitions.
Jo: Well done, Maged. Thank you so much for sharing your story. And will you be watching the Olympics and Paralympics this summer?
Maged: Yes, I will be. I will be. I usually follow the Olympics. And I know the next one will be in Paris in France.
Jo: You'll be cheering for Egypt.
Maged: Yes, I think the Egyptian delegation will go with two delegations. One for Olympics and the second one for Paralympic people.
Jo: Well, good luck to all of your athletes, and thanks for talking to me, Maged.
Maged: Thank you, Jo.
Jo: Thanks.
At the Summer Olympic Games in Paris in 2024, around 10,500 athletes will compete in 32 different sports, and the Paris Paralympics will see a total of 4,400 athletes competing in 22 sports. In this interview, Jo speaks to Maged, a British Council student who is also a former Paralympic swimmer! Watch the video to hear how and when he started swimming, and his best memories of Seoul 1988.
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I am not a big fan of the Olympic games. I remember when our big Tunisian hero Oussama Mallouli won his first gold medal in swimming and the second Tunisian who won this rang. The first was Mohamed Gammoudi in Jogging.
The best achievement I remember is when Oussama won the 10000 Km swimming race. I watched the competition with my father who was a big fan of Oussama.
I like all female sports people . They are heroes
I rarely watch these kinds of sport.I am not really fan of sport games.I only remember when I was a kid that it used to be impossible watching my animation series because of this event.what a horrible feeling I got at that time when we used to have one channel 🥲
Hi soumia87,
Oh yes, I remember the disappointment of finding that your favourite show was cancelled! I hope that you'll be able to watch something else that you enjoy on another channel this time :-)
Best wishes,
Jo (LearnEnglish team)
I remember some games played for the brazilian Volleyball selection, who won the gold medal in the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games.
The Olympic team has great brazilian volleyball players, like Giovane, Tande and Marcelo Negrão.