Tragedy struck in Egypt last December 2, when a young swimmer, Youssef Mohamed, drowned during a national under-12 championship in Cairo. He lost consciousness while swimming and sunk to the bottom of the pool. Reports say that he remained under water for over ten minutes before a swimmer from a subsequent race spotted him, and they couldn’t revive him.
The accident sparked outrage in the country, as parents at the event reported that lifeguards and lane timekeepers were not at their posts when Mohamed lost consciousness, and there was not a defibrillator on site.
A criminal investigation followed to those responsible, like the director of the tournament, the chief referee, three lifeguards, the federation’s executive director and board members, the head of the competitions committee, and reaching all the way to the head of the Swimming Federation in Egypt, Yasser Idris, that also works as the head of the country’s Olympic Committee, for gross negligence.
Reuters reports that Egypt has appointed an interim committee for their swimming federation, with the Ministry of Youth and Sports asking World Aquatics to oversee the interim committee to make sure it complies with international charters and regulations.
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