This Emirati couple is on a mission to make their daughter a rhythmic gymnastics champion – News

The strenuous but elegant sport of rhythmic gymnastics is usually dominated by Eastern European countries, especially the former Soviet republics and Bulgaria. However, Emirati couple Tariq Malallah and Malak AlFarsi remain steadfast in their dedication to promoting the sport in the UAE and helping the country gain international recognition by taking over the ailing Dubai Youth Olympic club, where they train girls. Tariq’s sporting experience as an enthusiastic soccer player helps him fulfill his new mission.

“At two years old, my daughter Lamia was always jumping. When she turned three, my wife Malak enrolled her in the ballet school at the Ibn Batuta shopping center, where her teacher encouraged her to be a ballet dancer.”

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“But when she started regular school, Lamia was naturally drawn to a rhythmic gymnastics club run by Russian athlete Ksenia Dzhalaghaniya, a former Russian world champion. It was called Dubai Youth Olympic Club and started in 2016. Lamia adopted a sport that included ballet in addition to floor exercises. It required skill and involved props like clubs, hoops, ribbons, etc. Above all, it needed flexibility and Lamia was the right age because once the child grows up, the flexibility of the body decreases,” says Malak .

“In Russia, most children train early and that is why the world of gymnastics is dominated by Russians. It is rare for Emiratis to attend the course,” he adds. But when Lamia did well, she got a lot of press and people started writing about this Emirati girl who excels in rhythmic gymnastics.

Malak and Tariq first became sponsors of Lamia’s club, but after 2020, after Covid, it began to suffer losses and the couple took over. “We are interested in this sport practiced by women and trained by female coaches being recognized at the national level,” says Malak. Today there are 30 clubs in Dubai itself. Most of them are run by expats, but theirs is the only one run by Emiratis.

Malak highlights here the need for sports courses at diploma or degree level. “Rarely do universities or schools teach sports academically or have sports diplomas. But there is a Master of Sports that can be obtained. “And our effort is for that to happen once there is a rhythmic gymnastics federation.”

But how much does it take to convince people to take up this sport? “ Few people use it because it is new. But we also have Arab students,” he adds. “Sometimes people ask me why I allow my daughter to wear the rhythmic gymnast costume? I say ‘Why not? They are always completely covered,’” says Tariq. “I defend my children and I will always support them. “I have also been an athlete and I would do everything possible to fulfill your dreams.”

However, there were obstacles on the way to his goal. The couple had to fight with their family to allow their daughter to continue with the sport. “I was clear from the beginning that I would not let my children laze around the house, become couch potatoes and watch TV all day. “My youngest daughter likes programming and we encourage her,” she says. The regime helps because, when Malak was a child, education, although taken seriously, was not really imposed. “When he was a kid and we didn’t like school, it was okay to leave. If you didn’t study, it was acceptable. But we are not like that. We guarantee the discipline of our children and, although today Lamia does not have personal time, what she does is not what all children do,” adds Malak.

Lamia, who has won several honors with the United Arab Emirates, was coached by Olesya Petrov, a former member of the Russian national team and European champion. She caught the attention of the president of the Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation, Irina Viner, after one of the most important championships and appeared on Russian national television after being invited to train with the national team in Moscow.

Lamia trains four to six hours every day and also attends the Choueifat school. “It’s difficult, but the school has supported me. Also, I don’t pressure her to excel in academics because she is focused on sports,” says the mother. “Yesterday Lamia came to see me and she told me that she had to go on a diet, without sweets or rice,” says Tariq. Rhythmic gymnasts must be light on their feet and cannot gain weight.

These changemakers are paving the way to make their children’s dreams come true. “I would love to see my daughter reach places I didn’t reach. She met Sheikh Mohammed and shook his hand. I haven’t met him yet,” says Tariq.

“This is a mission and I want to make that change for my daughter and for girls in the UAE,” Malak says with determination.

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