Nadine
Selaawi
Egypt
·
Basketball
Date of birth | 21 January 1998 |
|---|---|
Place of birth | Cairo |
Age | 28 |
Nationality | Egypt |
Career start | 2015 |
Disciplines | 5x5 Basketball / 3x3 Basketball |
Egypt's Nadine Selaawi was born into a basketball family, with her father, Mohamed Selaawi, being the top-scorer for his country in the 1984 Olympics and her mother, Eman Badrawy, also having represented Egypt at international level.
Her two elder brothers were also basketball players, so Nadine following in their footsteps was always a distinct possibility.
Following in her family's footsteps
Despite her father’s warnings about how tough it would be for Nadine to make it as a pro, she was never discouraged and from a young age set about becoming the hardest working player in the sport (and the best).
“So it happened naturally that I chose basketball,” Nadine explains. “I loved it and I decided to play. I saw my dad’s videos and films, he talked to us about basketball, his passion for basketball, and my mum as well. That kind of pushed me to say: 'I want to do this as well.’”
Nadine trained hard at the Al Ahly Club in Cairo under the tutelage of her mother and aged 13 she boldly informed her parents that she wanted to go to the USA to study and play basketball.
Impressing in the United States
This was virtually unheard of for an Egyptian girl at the time, but when her father watched Nadine in her first final at U14 level he was so impressed that his reluctance disappeared and Nadine headed for UNC Greensboro in North Carolina aged 17.
And what a wise decision it proved to be, as Nadine became UNCG’s all-time leading women’s scorer with 2,084 points – making such an impact that the college planned a ceremony to hang her number 35 jersey (the same number her dad used) at the court.
Success with Al Ahly
After college, Nadine returned to Egypt to support the game in her home nation, and she continues to excel for both Al Ahly Basketball and the national team.
Since joining Ah Ahly, Nadine has helped the club win the Women's Egypt Basketball League on three occasions, the Egypt Basketball Cup four times and the Women's Basketball League Africa for the first time in 2025.