CAIRO: “Ambition knows no age, no impossibilities,” 80-year-old Ezzeldin Bahader said.
The Egyptian engineer aims to break the world record and become the oldest football player in history to participate in an official football match.
Bahader is, in fact, looking to better his own record, set in March 2020, when he played for the 6th of October Sports Club in the Egyptian third division. He marked the occasion by scoring from the penalty spot, before adding another from open play.
Bahader spoke to Arab News on the sidelines of his individual training sessions in Cairo as he prepared for his latest challenge.
He said his passion for football began in childhood when he played in the streets of Cairo with a ball made with socks, a popular game at the time.
Despite working in the field of engineering, he never gave up on his dream of playing football, one that he fulfilled in 2020 when he played in an official match at the age of 74. He said that he follows a healthy diet and trains every morning at home for one hour.
The veteran also undergoes intensive training sessions twice a week, focusing on both fitness and technical skills, as he plays as a striker.
“I dream of joining a club in the second or first division,” Bahader told Arab News.
He considers Kazuyoshi Miura one of his inspirations in the world of football; the Japanese forward, and world’s oldest professional player, scored a goal in an official match after the age of 50.
Born in November 1945, Bahader was recognized by Guinness World Records in 2020 as the oldest active football player.