Karim Zidan is an Egyptian-Canadian journalist, short story writer, and translator.
Born in Cairo, Egypt, Karim grew up acutely aware of life under military dictatorship, which shaped his identity and determination to pursue journalism. He studied political science and international economic development at the University of Toronto before beginning his career as a sports journalist for VOX Media’s combat sports website BloodyElbow.com. Soon thereafter, he began to focus on the intersection of sports and politics, as well as investigative reporting on authoritarian regimes in Russia, Chechnya, Brazil, and the Middle East.
Karim spent time in Russia between 2014-17, where he visited various regions including St. Petersburg, Moscow, Sochi, Orenburg, and the North Caucasus. While participating as a play-by-play commentator for a Russian combat sports organization, he witnessed the annexation of Crimea, the 2014 financial crash, and arrived in Moscow shortly following the assassination of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, all of which added to his depth of knowledge on the Russian Federation.
Today, Karim work has been featured in mainstream outlets such as The New York Times, The Guardian, Foreign Policy, ESPN, and The American Prospect, among others. His reporting on Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov was also spotlighted in an award-winning HBO Real Sports documentary in 2017.
Karim’s reporting led to three consecutive nominations for MMA “Journalist of the Year,” as well as opportunities to lecture at acclaimed colleges such as Princeton University. He has participated in prestigious symposiums such as SXSW and the Oslo Freedom Forum and has taken part in the annual United Nations counter-terrorism conference.
Beyond his journalistic endeavours, Karim is a creative writer who has written numerous short stories set in Egypt. His stories range from magical realism to experimental prose and has appeared in literary journals such as Rusted Radishes and BULL Men’s Fiction.
Karim is also an Arabic-English translator who has translated short stories by the likes of Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz and Sahar El Mougy.