Aya Medany ( ar, آیة مدني; born November 20, 1988) is an Egyptian

modern pentathlete The modern pentathlon is an Olympic sport consisting of fencing (one-touch épée), freestyle swimming, equestrian show jumping, pistol shooting, and cross country running. The event is inspired by the traditional pentathlon held during the anc ...

. She made her Olympic début at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, Greece, as the youngest competitor both in the Egyptian team and competing in the pentathlon.

Career

Medany made her Olympic debut at the

at the age of 15. She was the youngest on the

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

team and the youngest out of any of the athletes competing in the

pentathlon A pentathlon is a contest featuring five events. The name is derived from Greek: combining the words ''pente'' (five) and -''athlon'' (competition) ( gr, πένταθλον). The first pentathlon was documented in Ancient Greece and was part of t ...

. She finished in 28th place overall. She won the Olympic test event in Beijing, China, meaning that she qualified for the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

. She went into the Olympics competing once more for

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

after conducting pre-games training in South Korea. The pentathlon event was due to take place on the final day of the Games, and as Egypt had only won a single bronze medal up until that point, she was highlighted as a potential medal winner towards the end of the Games despite having only placed in the top three of junior competitions prior to that point. However, on the day, Medany found the horse she was randomly assigned for the riding part of the pentathlon was unwieldy, resulting her in finishing in eighth place overall. She later said of the media response, "They put everything on the riding being bad, and me needing an improvement in riding. It wasn't really my fault." She won the World Cup event held in

Százhalombatta Százhalombatta (; hr, Bata; la, Matrica; sr, Бата, Bata) is a town in Pest County, Hungary. The name of this town in Hungarian literally means "One hundred tumuli" referring to the tumulus field at the edge of the town. History Grou ...

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

in 2011, ahead of the Olympic champion

Lena Schoneborn Lena or LENA may refer to: Places * Léna Department, a department of Houet Province in Burkina Faso * Lena, Manitoba, an unincorporated community located in Killarney-Turtle Mountain municipality in Manitoba, Canada * Lena, Norway, a village in ...

and British athlete

Mhairi Spence Mhairi Spence (born 31 August 1985) is a British modern pentathlete. She has won a series of medals at European and World Championships, but was not selected for the 2008 Summer Olympics by the British team due to the limited number of places ...

who finished in third place. She competed in the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

in London following her qualification at the 2011 African Championships in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

where she won the women's individual title. In March 2013 she announced retirement.

Personal life

Medany began wearing a

hijab In modern usage, hijab ( ar, حجاب, translit=ḥijāb, ) generally refers to headcoverings worn by Muslim women. Many Muslims believe it is obligatory for every female Muslim who has reached the age of puberty to wear a head covering. While ...

after the

, despite the fact she says it gives her a disadvantage whilst running. She is considering retirement from the sport following the

due to the ban on full-body swimsuits imposed by the swimming federation

FINA FINA (french: Fédération internationale de natation, en, International Swimming Federation, link=yes) (to be renamed as World Aquatics by ) is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administer ...

, which pentathlon takes its swimming rules from. Medany wants to swim in an outfit conforming to the

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

faith, while the swimming requirements state that outfits "shall not cover the neck, extend past the shoulder, nor extend below the knee". Her father Mahmoud Medany was a member of the

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is an intergovernmental body of the United Nations. Its job is to advance scientific knowledge about climate change caused by human activities. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) a ...

which won the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemi ...

in 2007 alongside

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic Part ...

. She works as a teacher assisting at the

Arab Academy for Science and Technology and Maritime Transport The Arab Academy for Science, Technology & Maritime Transport (AASTMT) ( ar, الأكاديمية العربية للعلوم والتكنولوجيا والنقل البحري) is a regional university operated by the Arab League which runs pro ...

. Her family refused to allow her to attend the rallies in

Tahrir Square Tahrir Square ( ar, ميدان التحرير ', , English language, English: Liberation Square), also known as "Martyr Square", is a major public town square in downtown Cairo, Egypt. The square has been the location and focus for political dem ...

during the

2011 Egyptian revolution The 2011 Egyptian revolution, also known as the 25 January revolution ( ar, ثورة ٢٥ يناير; ), began on 25 January 2011 and spread across Egypt. The date was set by various youth groups to coincide with the annual Egyptian "Police ho ...

Career highlights

2002 : 2nd Youth World Championship, Budapest, Hungary 2003 : 1st Youth World Championship, Leon Gu, Mexico 2004 : 1st Youth World Championship, Albena, Bulgaria : 28th

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

, Athens, Greece 2005 : 2nd Junior World Championship, Moscow, Russia : 2nd Youth World Championship, Pilsen, Czech Republic 2006 : 1st World Cup #2, Milfield, United Kingdom : 1st Junior World Championship, Shanghai, China : 1st Youth World Championship, Popoli-Sulmona, Italy : 1st World Cup #5, Cairo, Egypt : 3rd USA Open Championships, Colorado, USA 2007 : 1st African Championship, Cairo, Egypt : 3rd World Cup #2, Cairo, Egypt : 1st World Cup Final, Beijing, China 2008 : 2nd World Cup #3,

Millfield Millfield is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) located in Street, Somerset, England. It was founded in 1935. Millfield is a registered charity and is the largest co-educational boarding schoo ...

, United Kingdom : 1st World Cup #5,

Kladno Kladno (; german: Kladen) is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 67,000 inhabitants. It is the largest city in the region and together with its adjacent suburban areas has a population of more than 110,000. ...

, Czech Republic : 2nd Senior World Championship, Budapest, Hungary : 1st Junior World Championships, Cairo, Egypt : 7th

, Beijing, China 2009 : 1st World Cup #1 Mexico City, Mexico : 2nd World Cup #2, Cairo, Egypt : 1st World Cup #4, Rome, Italy : 1st Junior World Championships (individual),

Kaoshiung Kaohsiung City (Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsi ...

Chinese Taipei "Chinese Taipei" is the term used in various international organizations and tournaments for groups or delegations representing the Republic of China (ROC), a country commonly known as Taiwan. Due to the One-China principle stipulated by th ...

: 2nd Junior World Championships (Team relay), Kaoshiung, Chinese Taipei 2010 : 3rd World Cup #2, Cairo, Egypt 2011 : 1st World Cup #3, Budapest, Hungary Source:

References

External links

*
Egyptian Federation of Modern Pentathlon
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Medany, Aya 1988 births Living people Egyptian female modern pentathletes Olympic modern pentathletes of Egypt Modern pentathletes at the 2004 Summer Olympics Modern pentathletes at the 2008 Summer Olympics Modern pentathletes at the 2012 Summer Olympics Academic staff of the Arab Academy for Science, Technology & Maritime Transport World Modern Pentathlon Championships medalists