Accomplished athletes discussed the challenges that women, especially Muslim women, face in the field of sports, in an inspiring talk that highlighted the importance of providing opportunities for girls and women to enable them break down barriers.
The talk, open to women only, was held as part of Qatar National Sport Day activities in Education City Stadium. Titled ‘Champion Mindset: Unlocking Greatness’, the talk featured Tunisian tennis star Ons Jabeur; Ibtihaj Muhammad, an American Olympian sabre fencer and the first Muslim American woman to wear a headscarf while competing in the Olympics; and former Scottish middle- and long-distance Olympian runner Liz McColgan.
Qatari mountaineer Sheikha Asma al-Thani, director of marketing and International Cooperation Sector, Qatar Olympic Committee, was the moderator.
Ibtihaj spoke about her journey from her humble beginnings to Olympic glory, saying: “As a Muslim girl, and a girl who wears the Hijab, I never imagined that one day I would get my chance to become a professional athlete. But my goals were consistent from the very beginning – I believed that sport is for everyone, and this is where we can break all the stereotypes that people may place on us.”
Jabeur – also the first Arab and African Grand Slam finalist – said that as Arab women, “we must believe that we deserve our place in sports, paving the way for future generations.”
She said that as a Muslim player, she felt like she was always an outsider while touring on tennis tournaments. But, she says: “I wanted to show everyone that it's possible to see a Tunisian Arab Muslim woman participating in the highest level of the Women's Tennis Association. So, my goal has always been to achieve an something that had never been reached before.”
Liz McColgan narrated her experiences of how she became a professional athlete. She came from a very poor background, and as a child was overweight. But, as luck would have it, one of the teachers at school allowed her to play field hockey, and although she was not the best, she insisted on continuing to play, and eventually joined a local club.
She trained well at the club, and eventually caught the attention of a coach from the US who offered her a scholarship.
“This opportunity changed my life,” she says. “Success was not something I could have imagined when I was a child because of the lack of opportunities. Now, I advocate giving opportunities to the next generation, so they make achievements through hard work and belief in themselves. I faced challenges, such as being excluded by sponsors when I became pregnant, but I persevered and achieved greater success.”