July 15, 2023
WoEgypt

“Goodbye handball.. the journey is over.” – Rehab Gomaa

Egyptian handball player Rehab Gomaa announced her retirement after a life full of achievements and victories. Gomaa plays for the French St. Junien club.

Gomaa wrote on Facebook, “I never imagined that one day I would write this, but this is life. I achieved everything I dreamed of in handball, and this was a blessing from God.

I went through many moments of defeat, victory, joy and sadness, but l will never forget the people who supported during my career in handball. And since l will never be able to play for the Egyptian national team, and there is no goal for me to play anymore other than my love for the game, today I am announcing my retirement from handball.

Wish me luck in the next phase of my life, with my husband and my career. I thank everyone who stood by me. I thank all the people who supported me. I thank every journalist who spoke positively or negatively about me.

Thank you mom for everything you did for me. My mom is the real hero who accomplished the impossible.”

She played for the Egyptian National team before moving to Europe. Gomaa was the youngest professional player in the history of Egyptian handball. She was also the first Egyptian female to play for a French team.

In Europe, she played for a Danish team and the French ACH before playing for Sambre Avesnois Club, also in France. She is currently playing for the French team St. Junien.

Born in Aswan in Upper Egypt, she broke all social taboos that control the lives of girls in Middle Eastern societies and fought hard to pursue her dreams. She also broke the marriage taboo in her conservative society by choosing a French man to marry.

Despite all her professional accomplishments, the Egyptian Handball Federation excluded her from playing for the national team because of her age!!

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