Reem Kassem, an architectural engineering student at the American University in Cairo (AUC), became the first Egyptian and Arab woman to qualify for the 10km open water swimming event at the Olympics.
Kassem qualified for the event at a competition in Portugal in June, reported AUC’s news stories section.
“It’s every athlete’s dream to be in the Olympics, and it has always been a really big goal for me,” said Kassem to AUC News.
The 10km open water swimming event was first added to the Olympic Games in 2008 and sees swimmers battling it out for the top medal while swimming through waves and different water temperatures.
“I’m really pushing to do my absolute best during practice. I’m raising my expectations because I need to keep up with all the top athletes I see on TV,” added Kassem to AUC News.
Kassem joins dozens of Egyptian athletes heading to Rio de Janeiro for the Olympic Games which will be held from August 5 to 21. Egyptians will be competing in a variety of events such as taekwondo, boxing, rowing, shooting, swimming, table tennis and weightlifting.
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