Teen prodigy Hana Goda on pressure, Olympic dream and fear of failure

In the second episode of the Abtal podcast, host Reem Abulleil is joined by Egyptian table tennis prodigy Hana Goda.

Goda, 16, has been making waves in table tennis internationally since she was 11. She was ranked No 1 in the world in the under-15 cadets category when she was only 12.

Last year, at the senior level, she became the youngest to win the African Championship at the age of 15.

Goda is currently ranked in the world’s top 30 and is Paris-bound with team Egypt for the Olympic Games this summer.

She was recently named the Best Emerging Arab Athlete at the Mohammed bin Rashid Creative Sports Awards, and has an impressive sponsorship portfolio that includes a new contract with Red Bull Egypt.

In this conversation, Goda opens up about what it is like living in the spotlight as a young teenager, how she has been dealing with the weight of expectations and what it will take for her to contend in a sport dominated by East Asians.

You can listen to the full conversation on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and all major podcasting platforms, or watch the full interview on The National News YouTube channel.

EA Sports FC 26

Publisher: EA Sports

Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S

Rating: 3/5

How it works

Each player begins with one of the great empires of history, from Julius Caesar's Rome to Ramses of Egypt, spread over Europe and the Middle East.

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As unruled land and soldiers are acquired, players must feed them. When a player comes up against land held by another army, they can choose to battle for supremacy.

A dice-based battle system is used and players can get the edge on their enemy with by deploying a renowned hero on the battlefield.

Players that lose battles and land will find their coffers dwindle and troops go hungry. The end goal? Global domination of course.