Moustafa Hamid

Moustafa Hamid won the 1959 featherweight, Greco-Roman wrestling championship of the United Arab Republic (UAR), which was a union between Egypt and Syria that lasted from 1959 through 1961. At the 1959 Mediterranean Games he was runner-up to Lebanon’s Elie Naasan, and he defended that medal four years later, this time losing to Metin Alakoç of Turkey in the final. After coming runner-up at the 1960 nationals, he was selected to represent the UAR at that year’s Rome Olympics, where he was eliminated in round four. He then had his greatest success in 1961 when he won the world title. His final major international competition was the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, where he was again eliminated in round four. He later worked as a coach and was training the Cairo regional team when he died suddenly at the age of 51.