PARIS, July 30 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian fencer Nada Hafez has revealed that she competed in the Paris Olympic Games while just two months from giving birth.

The 26-year-old reached the last-16 of the women's individual saber competition, defeating Elizabeth Tartakovsky of the United States 15-13 before losing 15-7 to Jeon Ha-young of South Korea on Monday.

She then posted on social media that she had been competing while seven months pregnant.

"What appears to you as two players on the podium, they were actually three! It was me, my competitor, and my yet-to-come to our world little baby," she wrote on Instagram.

"My baby and I had our fair share of challenges, be it both physical and emotional. The rollercoaster of pregnancy is tough on its own, but having to fight to keep the balance of life and sports was nothing short of strenuous, however worth it," added the fencer, who is competing in her third Olympics.

Despite being knocked out in the last 16 in Paris, Hafez has still registered her best finish at the Olympics, having finished 29th at the Tokyo Olympics and 36th at the Rio Olympics.

"I'm writing this post to say that pride fills my being for securing my place in the round of 16!" she wrote.

Hafez became interested in fencing after watching her friend compete and took up the sport at age 11. "I first took up swimming and gymnastics, but then I had to leave gymnastics and I joined fencing by chance. I felt like I wanted to try it after seeing my friend and once I did, I loved it," she has said.

Despite some questioning if Hafez should have been replaced by someone else, most comments are positive and encouraging with one writing: "Balancing between pregnancy and pursuing your passion is never easy, so you should be super proud of yourself regardless of the outcome. You're setting such a good example for this little champ!" Enditem

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