Egypt, Tunisia to represent Africa at Olympics tennis tournament

FILE PHOTO: Mayar Sherif of Egypt in action during a past tennis match. /CFP

Mayar Sherif of Egypt and Tunisia’s Moez Echargui will represent Africa at the tennis tournament during the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

Sherif and Echargui will only compete in the singles draw, according to the entry list released by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) on Thursday. African countries do not have any representatives in the doubles or mixed doubles tournaments.

The release of the entry list by the ITF means Kenyan tennis player and 2023 African Games champion Angella Okutoyi will not play at the Games.

Okutoyi, 20, became African champion in March to secure an ITF place at Paris 2024 via continental qualification. However, she failed to win enough ranking points thereafter to make it to the top 400 of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) ranking before June 10 to guarantee her qualification for the Olympic Tennis Event.

Okutoyi’s team appealed to the ITF to allow her to compete at the Olympics, citing a lack of adequate time after the African Games to garner enough points to boost her ranking. The appeal was unsuccessful.

Last month, three-time Grand Slam finalist Ons Jabeur of Tunisia withdrew from participating at the Olympics to allow herself to be competitive for the rest of the season and avoid aggravating an existing knee injury.

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