Excelling in their fields
Over the past few years, we have watched women from the region break the glass ceiling in the sports industry. Now, we are witnessing more women from the Middle East, as they get involved in sports. And they don’t just play, the excel at it – they are women who soared towards fame and success with their outstanding performances in sports.
Here is a list of 10 inspiring women from the Middle East, who have made a name for themselves with their contribution to the sports industry.
Sinead El Sibai
View this post on Instagram
With her long-time support of the regional sports scene from a corporate position, Sinead has made a great contribution to the industry (pictured here with Roger Federer). She is Dubai Duty Free’s Senior Vice President – Marketing, and was named as one of the Top Ten ‘Most Influential Women in Sport 2019’ in a poll conducted by isportconnect, the UK-based networking platform. She has had an instrumental role in all of Dubai Duty Free’s major events and sponsorships, including the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open and the company’s major horse racing sponsorships in the UK and Ireland.
Farida Osman
View this post on Instagram
The Egyptian athlete has made a name for herself as one of the best professional swimmers in the region. She specialises in butterfly and freestyle events. She has broken several records throughout her career, holding the senior national records for all the butterfly, freestyle and backstroke events, as well as African records in the 50m and 100m butterfly.
Raneem El Weleily
View this post on Instagram
Egypt has been dominating squash, both in the women and men competitions. Currently, the top 10 PSA World Ranking for women includes four Egyptian players, three of whom occupy the first three spots. Raneem El-Weleily, holds the top position, and reached a career-high world ranking of No. 1 in September, 2015. She was a two-time finalist at the World Open in 2014 and 2016. She became the World Champion in 2017, after defeating fellow Egyptian Nour El Sherbini in the finals.
Zahra Lari
View this post on Instagram
Zahra is the world’s first figure skater to compete in a hijab, but she is also the UAE’s first figure skater to participate in the winter qualifications last year. She led the UAE’s mission to become the first Arab state to join the International Skating Union and she has also inspired around 100 Emirati women to lace up their skates and hit the ice.
Inès Boubakri
View this post on Instagram
The Tunisian athlete is a foil fencer and a two-time Olympian. She took part in the 2012 Olympic Games in London, reaching the quarter final. Four years later, at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro she won a bronze medal, making her the first Tunisian female to win such a medal at the Olympics.
Nada Askar Al Naqbi
The Emirati national has played a big role in promoting sports for women in the UAE and the region. She is serving as the Deputy Head of the Supreme Organising Committee, Arab Women’s Sports Tournament (AWST) and the and Head of the Executive Committee and Director General of the Sharjah Women Sports Foundation. The AWST was launched in 2012, and has so far attracted 68 teams from 16 countries including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Libya, Jordan, Egypt, Algeria, Somalia, Djibouti, Kuwait, Oman, Sudan, Iraq, and the hosts UAE.
Hassiba Boulmerka
View this post on Instagram
Hassiba Boulmerka is an iconic Arab athlete, as she was the first Arab female to ever win an Olympic title. She is also the first female African to win an athletic world title in the world championships.
Ruqaya Al-Ghasra
View this post on Instagram
The Bahraini athlete is a sprinter, and one of the first women to represent the Gulf nations at the Olympic Games, back in 2004. In 2006 she participated in the Asian Games in Doha and won the Women’s 200m. This was Bahrain’s first major international athletics gold medal.
Rani Elwani
Dr. Rania Elwani is an Olympic and former African record-holding swimmer from Egypt. She swam for Egypt at 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympics. She also has accomplishments in the industry that do not include being an athlete. In 2004, she became a member of the International Olympic Committee. As of 2010, she is also a member of the Athlete Committee of the World Anti-Doping Agency.
Mahassen Hala
View this post on Instagram
Mahassen is the first woman to represent Lebanon in Olympic weightlifting and in numerous other international competitions. She represented Lebanon at the 2018 Mediterranean Games and earned the first international medal for Lebanon in women’s Olympic weightlifting.
Media: Instagram.
