“We would be attacked on social media and people would question why women should be on TV in swimsuits, with our arms and legs seen, but this didn't stop me,” Egyptian Olympian Nihal Saafan states with a steely glare. “I had a dream, a goal and I’m proud to have lived it three times.”
On 5 August 2024 Nihal Saafan made history, by becoming her nation’s first-ever triple Olympian in artistic swimming.
It fulfilled a promise she made to her late father in 2016, shortly after her debut in Rio, Brazil. It also provided further evidence of why she was right to ignore the doubters and online trolls who wanted to suppress, stall, or end the development of the nation’s female athletes.
“My theory was that if I can do it, anyone else can do it, and that way, I would be paving the road for other girls and new generations to walk down this road with no, or maybe fewer challenges, than I faced,” she tells World Aquatics.
“I knew I would not like to eliminate it (negativity), and at times it was like facing a tornado, but I knew if it happened once, people would start to get used to it, it might start to change the culture and others girls would be inspired to go down the path without anything stopping them.”
Eight months after her history-making appearance, Saafan will return to the competition arena for the second leg of the 2025 World Aquatics Artistic Swimming World Cup in Somabay, Egypt.
Back in 2023 she was part of the line-up who attained silver in the Team Free event, but this time she will be as a member of the audience, rather than as an athlete.
“Life has been a bit of a rollercoaster, from competing at the Olympics, where I was really emotional and cried after our last routine as I knew it would be my last,” she says.
“Now I’m pregnant, but I’m also really reconsidering (retirement), so maybe I’ll get back as I feel like I’m missing out, but I will be in Somabay to support my team-mates as I always like to stay engaged with them and the sport.”
From Twin Targets to Going Solo for Her Father
Saafan and twin sister Nada, who would compete together at the Rio Olympic Games, began their love affair with the water as swimmers before being spotted by an artistic swimming coach at their local pool in Cairo.
“We were walking along poolside in my national club and the coach saw we were twin sister and asked our parents, ‘why don’t they join? They look very fit,’” she recalls.
“They explained that rather than being individuals (like in swimming) we would have a team, would listen to music, dance and choreography.
“My parents didn’t hesitate and that was in maybe 2001 or 2002, so from that moment I fell in love with the sport.”
Nada Saafan, like many within the Egyptian team, retired after competing in South America’s first Olympics, in 2016, and Nihal unsurprisingly found the period after those Games difficult.
However, she was soon given added motivation to continue.
“That time together was very, very special because we got used to doing everything together, being together all the time, supporting each other and uplifting each other,” she recalls.
“That time together was very, very special because we got used to doing everything together, being together all the time, supporting each other and uplifting each other."
“What drove me to go through (the time after her sister’s retirement), actually, was my father after the first Olympic Games.
Saafan continues; “I was still in college and graduated from engineering in Egypt after five years, with honours, but I didn't get an ‘A’, I got a B+.
“It’s amazing to be a professional athlete and a B+ student, but he thought that there's something missing, he asked me ‘why not an A?’ and this statement touched me.
“I told him that ‘I'm a B+ student and went to the Olympic Games, you should be proud of me’ and he said ‘I am, but you can still do a lot, I want to see you in Tokyo and Paris.’
“I told him, ‘three Olympic Games, no-one has ever done that!’ and he was like ‘I’ll support you.’ He was able to do so for Tokyo and then he passed away before Paris, but I know for a fact he’d be watching me and he’s very, very proud of me.”
‘Putting Egypt On The Artistic Swimming Map’
Egypt fielded athletes in both the women’s Duet and Solo events when the sport made its Olympic bow at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles. A 16-year absence followed, but the nation has been ever-present in the Games programme since Sydney 2000.
Saafan has witnessed first-hand what she sees as “huge” progressive steps by her nation in the sport, particularly over the last decade and believes that the current crop of talented athletes are well-placed to push boundaries further.
“I think throughout the past years Egypt has been put on the map, especially in Fukuoka (2023 World Aquatics Championships) when we entered our first final,” says Saafan.
“Now judges, competitors and other athletes see Egypt and they prepare a lot to face us, unlike in other years, so the girls are now working really hard to stay on this path, excel and improve every time, in every meet or competition.”
She is also full of praise for the introduction of the sport’s new rules. They debuted in 2023 and have undergone several subsequent revisions, the most recent of which were hailed as putting the 'art back into artistic swimming' at the Paris World Cup last month.
“We’re not only seeing Egypt, but a lot of teams that have been on the podium that we stopped seeing for a while are now back and I think it's a great opportunity for everyone to showcase their abilities and play with the difficulty,” Saafan tells World Aquatics.
“I don't think it stops the creativity, as what we see right now is a lot more creative than when the new rules were brought in and I think they will help push all the nations to be on the podium. Now it (rules) will not exclude anyone.”
A Second Generation of Saafan’s in Artistic Swimming?
The triple Olympian has kept in regular contact with her former teammates and is looking forward to supporting them in Somabay. However, she has recently considered whether she might rejoin them after becoming a mother later this year.
“I saw them once in the pool, all of them, and I felt like I want to be in the pool with you,” she recalls. “I felt like I was missing out on some stuff, like the little gossips we do in the pool, yeah, so we’ll see, but for now, I’m 100% a friend.
“Of course, when anyone of them needs anything, I'll be the first one to support them, and I’ll be their biggest supporter, and I really hope for the best for the team in Somabay.”
Saafan is due to have a girl, which naturally raises the question of whether she would be happy for her daughter to become an artistic swimmer someday.
“It’s a long path, but of course, if she wants to, I’ll give her all my support.”