Ahmed Ayoub Hafnaoui, an Olympic champion from Tunisia, returned home on Monday after taking two decisive victories at the World Swimming Championships in Japan.

At the airport in Tunis-Carthage, the 20-year-old Tunisian was greeted by family members, admirers, and government officials.

The Minister of Youth and Sport, Kamel Deguiche, the President of the National Olympic Committee, Mehrez Boussayene, and the President of the Tunisian Swimming Federation, Hedi Belhassan, were all there on Monday.

In Fukuoka, Japan, Hafnaoui took home two gold medals after winning the 1,500-meter freestyle final and the 800-meter freestyle final, both of which were world records.

Since Oussama Mellouli won gold in 2008 and 2012, Hafnaoui became the first Tunisian Olympic winner in 2020. Hafanoui, who was only 18 years old, won the 400m freestyle gold medal at Tokyo 2020.

Hafnaoui returned from a brief absence to focus on his undergraduate studies in the United States.