Alongside the African Championships over the Olympic distance, the African Junior Championships will take place in Hurghada, Egypt. Nine women are slated to contest the Junior event while fifteen men (of which eleven are African) will be racing.
In the men’s field, Sayed Sherif of Egypt is the top ranked African athlete. After finishing 4th at the Egyptian Championships in 2022, he will likely have the best chance of the weekend of bringing home a gold medal for the Egyptian team.
However, he faces a stern challenge in overcoming a strong Tunisian team.
Mohamed Aziz Hamdi, the runner-up at the African Junior Championships in 2022, will be back and on the hunt for gold. Already this year, he took the win at the African Junior Cup in Monastir and so arrives in form.
Hamdi’s teammate, Dawser Rezgui, will be another threat. Rezgui won the bronze medal at the African Junior Championships in 2022 and also claimed the silver medal in Monastir. Somehow, he will need to find a way past Hamdi. Having been close to beating his compatriot before, though, he can be confident of making it happen in Hurghada.
Zakaria Chtioui represents a third potential medallist for Tunisia. He finished 2nd at the African Junior Cup in Yassine Hammamet and also qualified to race at the World Junior Championships in Hamburg.
Beyond the Tunisian team, Algeria will also have a contender in the form of Mohamed-Samy Agab. Agab recently finished 13th at the African Sprint Championships where he was the best Junior performer. Having tested himself against Senior athletes only a month ago, the Junior event may be a gentler experience.
One notable aspect of the men’s start list is the absence of South African athletes. This is a slight surprise given the country’s general dominance on the African scene.
Meanwhile, in the Junior women’s event, Nora Nouri of Morocco will be one to watch. Nouri does not have a lot of international experience behind her. However, she has been racing for Metz Triathlon throughout the French Grand Prix this year and that kind of racing will have no doubt elevated her to a new level.
At the end of last year Nouri also won the African Junior Cup in Dakhla. More recently, she recorded a DNF at the Tangier World Cup. As possibly the most experienced woman in the field, she will look to lead from the front.
Sahar Ali of Tunisia will wear number 1 in Hurghada and will push Nouri all the way.
Earlier in the year, she won the African Junior Cup in Yassine Hammamet and added a silver medal at the African Junior Cup in Monastir. She is also the reigning Tunisian champion.
From the home team, Lilly Hatem will be confident of logging a good result after winning the Sharm El Sheikh African Junior Cup earlier in the season.
Similarly, Kadence Ribbink of South Africa will have high expectations after winning the African Junior Cups in Troutbeck and Swakopmund. To go with that, Ribbink finished 4th at the Commonwealth Youth Games.
All in all, while there will be small fields in Hurghada, two close races can be expected. The Egyptian hopefuls have good chances of stepping onto the top of the podium but they will be pushed every step of the way.
