Sayed Mersal started gaining attention for his boxing talents through his victories as a light-heavyweight in military tournaments in the early 1960s, and in 1961 he was selected to represent Egypt (then competing as the United Arab Republic) at that year’s Pan Arab Games. His most significant international appearance, however, came at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, where he survived until the quarter-finals, before being bested by Bulgaria’s Aleksandar Nikolov, an eventual bronze medalist. From the early-to-mid 1960s, he won several national titles as a light-heavyweight and, by career, he served in the Egyptian Armed Forces.
Egypt