Egypt's Olympic fairytale: Fighting for bronze
Egypt's handball team have made history by making their first ever semi-finals before losing to France
Handball
The men's Egyptian handball team was on a mission at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
They made history by defeating Germany to advance to their first ever Olympic semi-final, the first African team to do it and the first non-European team in three decades.
Losing 27-23 to a fierce-looking France and Nikola Karabatic takes nothing away from their incredible Olympic campaign. The Africans are still on track of becoming the first non-European team on an Olympic podium since South Korea managed it at their home Games in Seoul 1988.
They will meet .. in the bronze medal game on Saturday, 7 August.
Egypt's star men Yahia Omar, Ali Zein, Ahmed Mohamed, Ahmed Elahmar, Karim Hendawy and Mo Sanad have nothing to fear having lit up Tokyo and beaten three European powerhouses on their way to the semi-final.
The Egyptian star has shone bright here in Japanese capital and they laid down a marker in their first match defeating Portugal 37-31 before also taking care of Japan and upsetting Egypt 2021 World Championships runner-up Sweden.
Egypt even gave Mikkel Hansen's Denmark a run for their money in the group stage in a repeat of arguably the greatest game of handball ever from the World quarter-finals.
The Pharaohs were leading at half-time 15-14 and pushed the reigning World and Olympic champs right to the end.
Losing to Denmark at their home Worlds on penalties lit a fire under this Egyptian side, and they look primed to do something no non-European side has ever managed before.
Finishing on the Tokyo 2020 podium would reverberate way beyond handball's borders as they would become the first Egyptian team to make an Olympic podium in any team sport.
Imagine what it would do for the sport of handball in the country.
The nation's claim on handball runs deep, going all the way back to ancient Egypt and hieroglyphics on tombs that appear to depict priests playing an early form of the game thousands of years ago.
This origin story and the brilliance of the current team has an air of destiny around Egypt at Tokyo 2020, and they are set on giving their handball Cinderella story a happy ending.
Egypt's stars to watch
Far from a fluke, this Egyptian team is crammed with world-class talent playing at top European clubs, they have earned their semi-final place.
But the current crop owes much to generations that have gone before them.
23-year-old superstar-in-the-making Yahia Omar scored six goals from eight shots against Portugal in their stunning opener, but 37-year-old legend Ahmed Elahmar outshone him by shooting a perfect 6/6.
The veteran right-back was part of the 'Golden Generation' from 2001 which became the first non-European team to make the semi-final stage at a World championships, boasting stars like the legendary Hassan Yousry.
They inspired today's brand new golden gen to take their talents to the handball court and not the football pitch as so many do now, aiming to emulate the likes of Liverpool's Mo Salah.
But Mo Sanad is a household name in Egypt too, and after that epic quarter-final defeat to Denmark he said:
"We believe this tournament is the beginning of something big for the current generation... We want to do something big. We start dreaming again, we are proud of ourselves and Egyptians should be too."
The team has already made fans back home proud by taking out three big European names on their way to the semi-final, and something truly historic is just one victory away.
Egyptian handball's history in the making
Now they face the biggest match they've ever played against in a battle for bronze.
Omar, Sanad, Ahmed Elahmar, Ali Zein, Ahmed Mohamed have been on fire so far, Omar leads Egypt's Tokyo 2020 scoring with 27 goals but Egypt have played with a focus and efficiency all over the court that's almost scary.
In the quarter-final against Germany they had a 78% efficiency score to Germany's 53%.
They worked, defended, blocked and spoiled the Germans' path to goal, putting bodies on the line, Germany were 6/15 from six metres and 5/16 from nine metres, while goalkeeper Hendawy was immense saving 18/44 shots, a massive 41 percent save rate.
Egypt's professionalism, physicality and tactics have improved as the likes of Omar have joined Champions League side Telekom Veszprém, Ali Zein is now at Barcelona, and Mo Sanad at Nimes.
They've grown too under Spanish coach Roberto García Parrondo who's been at the helm since 2019.
He felt the disappointment of a nation in Egypt after that iconic quarter-final match against the Danes.
"The match was historic. Anyone who likes handball loved that match. There was great handball, desire, emotion, drama, a game that wins over fans," the Madrid man told Spain's Marca.
"We had it won, we were in the semi-finals of the World Championships, but that over-eagerness caused errors. We have to learn from what happened and avoid a repeat."
Another win would get them bronze.
Even if they lose, Tokyo 2020 has given them another chance to show the world what they are made of.
Egypt's Cinderella story has a happy ending in sight and its new golden generation are just one game away from greatness.