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Barada Retires on Eve of Al Ahram

by Martin Bronstein and Golestan Radwan, London and Egypt © 2001

BARADA, EGYPTIAN STAR, RETIRES

August 30 2001 - Ahmed Barada, the former world number two confirmed his retirement with a full and emotional statement to Egypt's al Ahram newspaper. Barada said:

"Now it's time to quit the game and get rid of the public pressure about getting back on court quickly. The decision was not easy, especially after I reached world ranking 2 and after a life full of pain and fight, in which I deprived myself of many things to make the crowd, who always dreamed of me becoming world's number one, happy.

"The game of Squash is one of the hardest sports ever and it requires a lot of effort and total devotion, which is exactly what I've been doing. My life was wholly based on Squash but what I've been through -which is a lot- was beyond my capacity. Ever since that accident in April 2000, I've been suffering from its results. I still have a back injury which is affecting my performance till today."

He added that he'd been to France and Germany more than once to undergo the best physiotherapy he could find but the aftereffects were still there. He said he would go to France within the next few days to have another check-up.

"The support by the great people of Egypt always made me determined to win all the time, which helped me a lot in making my decision to quit since I'm not 100% fit. I think it's the best thing to do right now as I cannot bear the pressure to come back without being able to. I've made many of my dreams come true in the world of Squash and had no other ambition but to reach the top of the Squash world, motivated by the level I had before the accident and my young age which is still 24, along with the love and support of many people."

He said that the main reason of his sadness now was not being able to participate in the next Al-Ahram tournament, which he considered the best tournament of his life. "During the past few months I tried to participate in tournaments but I couldn't, as I wanted to maintain the high standard I had reached with my effort and sweat in the minds of the people, and therefore I've been living under great psychological stress of wanting to go back and not being able to."

Regarding his future steps, Barada said: "I will live like a normal person. I'll get married and I'll support the Egyptian team in the next World Open. I hope they will reach the finals and thank God, we now have very good players who can lead the team to victories, especially after the base of players has expanded and the game has become more popular in Egypt as a result of the many great tournaments we organize."

Finally, Barada asked his fans and Squash-lovers to accept his decision, and pray for him to get well and succeed in his new life.

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