Egypt Beats Spain 2-1 to Reach Men’s Football Quarterfinals at Paris Olympics

 Paris 2024 Olympics - Football - Men's Group C - Spain vs Egypt - Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux, France - July 30, 2024. Ibrahim Adel of Egypt and Mohamed Elneny of Egypt celebrate after the match. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Football - Men's Group C - Spain vs Egypt - Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux, France - July 30, 2024. Ibrahim Adel of Egypt and Mohamed Elneny of Egypt celebrate after the match. (Reuters)
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Egypt Beats Spain 2-1 to Reach Men’s Football Quarterfinals at Paris Olympics

 Paris 2024 Olympics - Football - Men's Group C - Spain vs Egypt - Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux, France - July 30, 2024. Ibrahim Adel of Egypt and Mohamed Elneny of Egypt celebrate after the match. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Football - Men's Group C - Spain vs Egypt - Bordeaux Stadium, Bordeaux, France - July 30, 2024. Ibrahim Adel of Egypt and Mohamed Elneny of Egypt celebrate after the match. (Reuters)

Ibrahim Adel scored a pair of goals and Egypt advanced to the men's football quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics atop its group by beating Spain 2-1 on Tuesday.

Spain had already reached the knockout round and was vying for a first-place finish in Group C but was instead leapfrogged by determined Egypt in Bordeaux.

In the other match of the group, the Dominican Republic played to a 1-1 tie with Uzbekistan, which had already been eliminated. The draw in Paris was not enough to get the Dominican Republic into the next round.

The quarterfinal matchups won't be determined until Wednesday's games are complete. The top two teams in each of the four groups advance.

Adel's first goal came off a cross from Zizo late in the first half. His second came in the 62nd minute, when he worked around Spanish goalkeeper Alejandro Iturbe, who had come forward to stop him.

Samu Omorodion scored for Spain in the final moments of regulation but the comeback fell short.

In the group's other match, Rafael Nunez converted on a penalty early in the second half to put the Dominican Republic in front, but Alisher Odilov tied it in the 58th.



Habib Becomes 1st Lebanese Player in Open Era to Play in Grand Slam Men's Singles Draw

FILE - Hady Habib of Lebanon, right, walks by Carlos Alcaraz of Spain during the men's singles tennis competition, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 27, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Andy Wong,File)
FILE - Hady Habib of Lebanon, right, walks by Carlos Alcaraz of Spain during the men's singles tennis competition, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 27, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Andy Wong,File)
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Habib Becomes 1st Lebanese Player in Open Era to Play in Grand Slam Men's Singles Draw

FILE - Hady Habib of Lebanon, right, walks by Carlos Alcaraz of Spain during the men's singles tennis competition, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 27, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Andy Wong,File)
FILE - Hady Habib of Lebanon, right, walks by Carlos Alcaraz of Spain during the men's singles tennis competition, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 27, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Andy Wong,File)

Hady Habib isn't likely to find anything too daunting at the Australian Open now that he's become the first Lebanese player in the Open era to reach a Grand Slam men's singles draw.
He advanced through three rounds of the qualifying at Melbourne Park, winning his third match in a tiebreaker 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (8) over Clement Chidekh of France on Thursday to secure a place in the main draw of the tournament that starts Sunday, The Associated Press reported.
It continued a rapid rise for Habib, who made his Olympic debut last year in Paris, running into eventual silver medalist Carlos Alcaraz, a four-time major winner, in the first round. It was two sets he'll long remember.
Late last year, he made history at Temuco, Chile by becoming the first ATP Challenger Tour champion from Lebanon.
The 26-year-old Habib was born in Houston, Texas and moved to Lebanon as a young child, learning how to play there. He returned to the US to pursue a pro career and feels now like he's representing of the spirit of Lebanese people.
“I know it’s just a sport, but I feel like representing Lebanon and sacrificing all the things I had to do to get here, it kind of resembles how our nation has fought back,” Habib told Australia's SBS News this week.
His personal success has come at a difficult time during the war between Israel and Hezbollah.
“Every morning, I was waking up during that challenging time, I was contacting all my family members, my friends, making sure they’re okay,” Habib told SBS News. "My heart’s just shattered to see what’s happening to our country and people.
“It was a hard time mentally for me, knowing that you can’t do anything to help, but I’m glad things are calming down now. Hopefully we’ll find some peace.”
Habib's first-round opponent at Melbourne Park will be determined when all qualifiers are inserted into the main draw.