Fatema Hameed Gerashi
Encyclopedia
Fatema Hameed Gerashi, born in 1987 or 1988, is a Bahrain
i swimmer.
She represented her country at the 2000 Summer Olympics
in Sydney
, competing in the women's 50 metres freestyle race. At the age of 12, she was the youngest competitor of any event and any nationality at the Sydney Games. She completed the race with a time of 51.15, finishing more than twelve seconds ahead of Equatorial Guinea
's Paula Barila Bolopa
, but was disqualified, reportedly for having wobbled on the starting blocks, which was deemed a false start despite her not having been the first competitor to enter the water.
The Times
praised her "Olympic spirit" and her "brave, technically proficient race". The Guardian
likewise praised her participation as conforming to "the true spirit of the Olympics". The Telegraph described her as "a pioneer for Arabian Muslim
women in a sport where the disrobing of the performers creates religious and cultural problems." Her participation was reportedly part of the Bahraini government's stated effort to promote "equality in sport". She was, indeed, -along with runner Mariam Mohamed Hadi Al Hilli
- one of the first ever female competitors to represent Bahrain at the Olympics - although two women had previously competed for Bahrain
in track and field at the Paralympic Games
in 1984.
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
i swimmer.
She represented her country at the 2000 Summer Olympics
2000 Summer Olympics
The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, competing in the women's 50 metres freestyle race. At the age of 12, she was the youngest competitor of any event and any nationality at the Sydney Games. She completed the race with a time of 51.15, finishing more than twelve seconds ahead of Equatorial Guinea
Equatorial Guinea
Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea where the capital Malabo is situated.Annobón is the southernmost island of Equatorial Guinea and is situated just south of the equator. Bioko island is the northernmost point of Equatorial Guinea. Between the two islands and to the...
's Paula Barila Bolopa
Paula Barila Bolopa
Paula Barila Bolopa, born in 1981 or 1982, is a swimmer from Equatorial Guinea. She was one of two Equatorial Guinean swimmers to compete at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, the other being Eric Moussambani....
, but was disqualified, reportedly for having wobbled on the starting blocks, which was deemed a false start despite her not having been the first competitor to enter the water.
The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
praised her "Olympic spirit" and her "brave, technically proficient race". The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
likewise praised her participation as conforming to "the true spirit of the Olympics". The Telegraph described her as "a pioneer for Arabian Muslim
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
women in a sport where the disrobing of the performers creates religious and cultural problems." Her participation was reportedly part of the Bahraini government's stated effort to promote "equality in sport". She was, indeed, -along with runner Mariam Mohamed Hadi Al Hilli
Mariam Mohamed Hadi Al Hilli
Mariam Mohamed Hadi Al Hilli is a Bahraini Olympic athlete, who specialises in the 100 metres sprint. She was one of the two Bahraini women to participate in the Sydney Olympics in 2000 on behalf of the Middle Eastern island, the other being Fatema Hameed Gerashi...
- one of the first ever female competitors to represent Bahrain at the Olympics - although two women had previously competed for Bahrain
Bahrain at the Paralympics
Bahrain made its Paralympic Games début the same year as its Olympic début, at the 1984 Summer Paralympics in Stoke Mandeville and New York, sending a delegation to compete in track and field...
in track and field at the Paralympic Games
Paralympic Games
The Paralympic Games are a major international multi-sport event where athletes with a physical disability compete; this includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and Cerebral Palsy. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which are held immediately following their...
in 1984.
See also
- Mariam Mohamed Hadi Al HilliMariam Mohamed Hadi Al HilliMariam Mohamed Hadi Al Hilli is a Bahraini Olympic athlete, who specialises in the 100 metres sprint. She was one of the two Bahraini women to participate in the Sydney Olympics in 2000 on behalf of the Middle Eastern island, the other being Fatema Hameed Gerashi...
- Bahrain at the 2000 Summer OlympicsBahrain at the 2000 Summer OlympicsBahrain competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.Fatema Hameed Gerashi, who represented Bahrain in swimming, was the youngest competitor of any event and any nationality at the Games, aged only 12...
- Francois LatilFrancois LatilFrançois Latil, born June 10, 1938, is a ni-Vanuatu archer, and retired lawyer.He was the first person to represent Vanuatu in archery at the Olympic Games, when he competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. He qualified on merit for the Games. At the age of 62, he was also the oldest...
, the oldest competitor at the Sydney Olympics, while Gerashi was the youngest