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Zied Ayet Ikram, the only from in the ��Games, undertook��his vigorous��training in Carthage,����,where��his family are from. He trained with the Tunisian team after a previous��agreement between��the Moroccan and Tunisian wrestling federations.

Ikram said to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, ������’s Arabic-language sister publication: “I had intended to start my training in El Jadida city in Morocco, before travelling to to continue preparing in Tehran; but coronavirus put a stop to all that – many sporting competitions were cancelled”.

During the , the Kingdom of 🇲🇦 will be represented by 48 champions in various disciplines who will try to honour the flag and try to get a place in the final podium of their respective competitions.

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He added, “I was forced to return to Tunisia, where my family lives, and trained there with the��national Tunisian team, who��made me feel very��welcome – this was after an agreement between the Moroccan and Tunisian wrestling federations. I took advantage of this period by attending internal camps with the Tunisian team, though at this time I had doubts over whether I would be able to attend my third Olympics session, after going to��London in 2013 and Rio in 2016”.

The Moroccan wrestler continued: “I was continually asking myself if I would be able to win a medal and qualify for the Olympic games again. This was after the disappointment I felt after the African Games in 2019,��which many who follow the sport doubted whether I would be able to make it”.

Ikram continued: “Thank God��for the support from those close to me and my family, and the support��from the Moroccan Wrestling Federation and the Tunisian Federation- I am grateful to them for working with me, because that helped me perform well��in the qualifying rounds of the Olympics in Hammamet. I proved there that I am at the forefront of Moroccan wrestling, and am confident I can do well in the Olympics”.

On his recent preparations for the Olympics, Ikram explained: “The situation before and after qualifying for the Olympics didn’t change - there were still difficulties travelling because of the pandemic, so I chose to train solely��with the Tunisian team, which had an international take to their training".��

Ikram concluded by saying: “I dream of making the Arab and African world proud, including my��country Morocco,��so that the endless hours��I have spent in training would��have been worth it. I will try my best to perform to the best of�� my ability at these games��,my third Olympics session. Finally, I would like to thank all those who have helped me along this journey��and have kept my spirits up – thank you everyone”.

This is an edited translation from our Arabic edition. To read the original article click

This article is part of ������'s special coverage of the Tokyo Olympics. Click to read the whole series.