All It Takes Is One Woman
Haya Al Ghanim, Qatar
Haya Al Ghanim is a dedicated mother of three and an avid runner. As part of the GOALS program, Haya tells the story of her running journey and the importance of an active lifestyle.
My sports journey started in 2013 shortly after the Boston Marathon bombing. I was living in Cambridge, Massachusetts, pursuing my MBA at MIT Sloan, but that weekend I was out of town and watching the horror unfold on the news. Following the attacks, the whole city was in lockdown. The news repeatedly showed a video of a 78-year old man collapsing as the bomb went off. He was injured and terrified, and yet he got up and completed the marathon. The 28-year-old me watched this and thought, “where did he get this courage and determination?” I can’t even jog for one kilometer, and I never take the stairs.
A few weeks later, summer had started in Boston and I joined the many casual runners on the banks of the Charles River. This is when my sports journey began. One year later, I ran a 10k race in Boulder, Colorado, and a half marathon in Rhode Island. Both took place just around my graduation and then it was time to return to Doha.
Facing The Mountain
My name is Haya, I am Qatari, and – in addition to being a wife, daughter, and mother to three children – I am a runner who finds joy and serenity in putting one foot in front of the other, at a relatively slow pace, because slow is steady and steady is fast.
Returning to Doha, and leaving Boston, was bittersweet. I love my home here and my family, but I also thought that my running days had reached an end. I did not know where to run, who else was running, and if it was even safe to run. I did not know how I would explain my love for running to my friends and family.
As the weather in Doha started to cool down, I found myself seeking outdoor activities, such as kayaking and cycling. I found a group that was training to climb Mount Kilimanjaro and I joined them.
The preparation for the trip was full of bonding moments with the group as we purchased equipment, packed bags, and trained. The climb was physically demanding, but worth every ache. The chance to disconnect from our daily lives and focus on putting one foot in front of the other surrounded by beautiful scenery was the adventure of a lifetime. As I was descending from the peak, I thought to myself that I would like to come back with my family someday.
Our Community Grows
My sports journey is a dream come true. I am lucky to have witnessed the transformation over the past ten years in Qatar. Previously, women’s participation in outdoor sports was minimal, especially amongst my local community. Today, we have several women-only running groups that participate in races all year round. The growth has been exponential.
I started running, kayaking, and cycling with different groups of people who also loved outdoor activities. I learned a lot from them and enjoyed being part of the athletic community. We developed a comradery even though we were not competing as a team, as we shared the same concerns, what do we wear and is it safe? Together, we developed a new level of appreciation for sport because we did not take the opportunity to participate for granted. We learned more about our needs and how to do what we love within our own cultural context.
I also was fully aware of the fact that I stood out as the only Qatari woman participating in outdoor activities. This made me feel like I had a huge responsibility to make sure I was respecting our culture while participating. I realized if I did not, this might close the door for others to enjoy outdoor sports in my community.
I am living what was just a dream ten years ago. I am running in Qatar, my home, with my friends and family.
From Disappointment To Opportunity
In the early days of my running journey, I wanted to participate in a half marathon but faced concerns the night before the race from my father, even though he had been supportive throughout the training period. I assumed cultural norms and concerns for my reputation worried him, so I did not push it and decided to withdraw from the race.
I was disappointed, but I was also determined to overcome this challenge, in the right way. I realized that my father’s concern was that I would stand out in the crowd and this might harm my reputation professionally. My solution was to blend in by getting more women to participate in outdoor sports without compromising this value.
I wanted to involve other women in sports initially because I wanted to avoid being alone. I wanted more women to join me so that I would not stand out. With time, I found myself in sport – it helped me manage stress, think creatively, and meet others. And I wanted to share that joy with everyone. I strongly believe we can change generations of women with this small change.
I am not one to challenge cultural norms - not mine or those of others. What I do strongly believe is that crossing cultural norms that are based on Islamic values is not acceptable. However, crossing cultural norms based on customs, especially if it has no Islamic basis, is beneficial and is a good use of critical thinking to reach a better balance of culture and norms.
Keeping in mind the cultural acceptance of women’s participation in sports, I tried to think of the line I would draw for myself that I would not cross or accept compromises around. That line is the Hijab. I would not compromise, or even promote pursuing sports, at the expense of one’s Hijab values. Stemming from this belief, I, along with my team of highly driven women, wanted to do something to make outdoor sports more accessible for women.
Putting Women First
When a woman leads by example and has an active lifestyle, her children absorb the importance of this. This habit grows with them and it inspires others. We took this drive to lead by example and created Oola, a modest sportswear brand catering for the needs of women.
In Arabic, Oola means first. We believe that every woman should put her health first and prioritize her wellbeing.
I surrounded myself with like-minded, highly driven ladies who shared a vision for making outdoor sports accessible for more women. We formed a team to tackle this challenge and created Oola, a modest sportswear clothing brand catering to our needs. We did not stop at clothing. We organized training sessions, ladies-only outdoor races, and fun family activities. From there onwards, the community grew and the social stigma around women in sports lessened.
I feel incredibly proud of this shift in perception and happy to see my children growing in a place where they can run freely, safely, and be part of a community.
My Support System
There are two people who supported me the most throughout my sports journey. The first is my father. He was an athlete when he was younger, so he can relate to my sports journey. One day I came home with a road bike after a fun training ride with a cycling friend. My father asked me what I was doing and I told him it was my friend’s bike. He said to me, “Why would you do that? Go get your own bike and give your friend hers back!” I was over the moon. For a moment, I thought he would ask me to stop cycling, but instead he gave me wings to fly.
The second person who has supported me throughout my journey is Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser. When we launched our Oola campaign, she invited us to hear about our new venture and support our passion. She was generous with her time and advice. She then took a photo with us and supported our brand. The photo was the true launch of our efforts and a signal to the community that positive transformation was about to happen. I do not think sport in Qatar will be what it is today for women without her vision and actions.
Qatar East To West
I am part of the QtrRun Ladies group, a community of women who enjoy running in Qatar. The group meets to train together and support each other in races. I signed up to do the Qatar East to West run with the group for the third year in a row.
Every year, when the registration opens, we immediately start forming teams and selecting distances. We then register and commit to following a training plan to be ready for the day. While most of the ladies meet to train together, I tend to train solo because of my schedule.
The race day ends up being a celebration of the training phase – I finally get to meet my teammates and show up for them while having fun! I tend to position myself far from the start line to avoid crowds, and specifically to avoid being close to men while I run. When I am on the starting line of a race, I know that I have done everything I could to prepare for this moment and now it is time to enjoy the fruits of my hard work.
The Qatar East to West race route passes by landmarks that I am used to driving past. Seeing these structures on foot while running makes me feel like a tourist in my own country and I am able to appreciate them more. Another beautiful part of running this race as a team is the comradery that develops among teammates. For a team to finish the race, everyone must finish their distance. This was mentally challenging for me as I did not want to let the team down.
The anticipation of the run, the crossing of Qatar on foot, the support for our team and other runners, and all aspects of this adventure leaves runners with wonderful memories. This experience is also a great way to get to know people on a deeper level and I love running with women, which is something that I do not take for granted.
I got to know Hamyan, a teammate running her second Qatar East to West race, having previously run in 2021. She finished the first segment of the race and I finished the second, so we ended up riding in the car together for 60 kilometers, over nine hours. Hamyan is a Qatari PE teacher, nature photographer, diver, runner, equestrian, and outdoor lover. The race was incredible but sharing it with Hamyan and the rest of the team is what made the journey a true celebration of our training.
A Conversation in the Lift
On the first day of my orientation at MIT Sloan, I took the lift to the first session. Along with me was another fellow student from the United States. He asked me where I was born, and I told him Qatar. He replied that he knew something about Qatar, and I tried to guess what it was.
Was it the fact that Qatar just beat the US to the right to host the FIFA World Cup? No. Was it about Qatar Airways? No. Was it Al Jazeera? No. Instead, he told me that Qatar had the highest obesity rate per capita that year.
That still lives with me today. How do we change this? The country has taken significant measures to change this and I want to play my part. I strongly believe that when I changed my behavior and started exercising, my brothers looked at me and thought, “if this busy working wife, and mother of three children can do it, what excuse do I have?”
Women’s participation in sports is an area full of challenges and opportunities in Qatar – and around the world. The biggest challenge I see today is the social stigma associating outdoor sports with something that goes against our values and culture. There is a growing community of people that see the value of sport and acknowledge its benefits, but many seem to caution against it, or even starting to accept outdoor sport.
I have taken part in women-only initiatives at Oxygen Park, in Qatar Foundation’s Education City, as well as women-only cycling days at Lusail International Circuit, and it has been encouraging to see more and more women join.
My children look at me and see sport as a necessity. All it takes is one woman working out in each family and we start seeing an amazing impact throughout the whole nation.
