Rabat - The disappointment surrounding Morocco’s performance in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games is still palpable, as the North African country only secured two medals - one gold and one bronze.
Morocco took over 60 athletes to Paris to take part in the global Olympics, which ran from July 26 until August 11.
Through Moroccan champion Soufiane El Bakkali and the Atlas Lions football team, the country managed to secure a few medals. However, this low medal count has left many Moroccans questioning the effectiveness and role of officials at the helm of the Moroccan Athletics Federation.
The decisive results sparked a wave of concern, with several political parties joining in the calls for accountability.
The Justice and Development Party (PJD) parliamentary group sent a letter on Monday, calling for an urgent meeting of the Committee on Culture, Education, and Communication to examine the “deplorable performance and disappointing results of Moroccan sports at the Paris 2024 Olympics.”
The parliamentary group summoned both the Minister of Education and Sports, Chakib Benmoussa as well as Fayçal Laraichi, President of the Moroccan Olympic Committee to the parliament.
“This is a performance that falls short compared to the results achieved by other countries,” PJD said in the letter, requesting also the presence of former Moroccan Olympic champions to take part in the meeting.
The Party of Progress and Socialism also requested the opening of an institutional discussion between the Moroccan parliament and the government on this issue, “which certainly has social, economic, financial, and cultural implications.”
The party acknowledged that Moroccan fans applauded the two medals secured, but there remain many broad questions about the final ranking and overall results of Morocco’s participation.
“While the Moroccan sports public is proud of these two valuable medals, it raises many broad questions about the final ranking and overall results of our country in the Paris Olympics, the results of other sports categories, the roles, and responsibilities of the Moroccan National Olympic Committee, the seriousness of the preparation by sports federation…,” the party fumed.
Moroccan athletes' defeats were louder than the celebrations as many who participated left the competition at very early stages.
The situation left many Moroccans reeling in disappointment.
In a recent interview with Morocco World News (MWN), sports policy specialist Moncef El Yazghi attributed the situation to the absence of a clear strategy and concrete preparation ahead of the competition.
“It must be acknowledged that when you enter the Olympic Games, you join a vast field comprising around 211 countries,” El Yazghi told MWN, adding that some countries have a clear strategy.
“Sometimes, countries even announce in advance that their target is, for example, five medals, 10 medals, or 40 medals,” he said, noting that the situation does not rely on chances or miracles. “It is calculated in advance with a small margin of error, not exceeding 1% for unexpected surprises.”
El Yazghi stressed that Morocco winning more than two or three medals in the Olympics would be a surprise, stressing that the North African country still relies on specific sports and has failed to support other categories.
“This situation highlights a point I have been making for 15 years: We lack a comprehensive sports strategy that covers all sports. Instead, we have initiatives and some efforts, but no overarching vision,” he said.