Fatima Almubarak

UAE pioneer who revolutionized women's sports participation in the Arab world through grassroots advocacy

Fatima Almubarak (b. 1950) is the founder of the UAE Women's Sports Federation, established in 1979 to break gender barriers in athletics. As one of the first Emirati women to compete internationally (silver medal at 1975 Asian Games), she dedicated her career to creating accessible sports opportunities for Arab women. Her Play to Empower initiative trained 2,000 female coaches by 2000 and built 50 gender-segregated sports facilities across the UAE.

Almubarak pioneered cultural sensitivity strategies, such as organizing hijab-friendly athletic competitions and partnering with religious scholars to reinterpret Islamic texts regarding women's physical activity. Her 1998 book "Running Through Walls: A Woman's Journey in Sports" became required reading at Middle Eastern universities. The Arab Women's Olympic Committee (AWOC) was modeled after her federation's structure when founded in 1999.

Her legacy includes launching the Desert Marathon for Women (first held 1995) and negotiating historic agreements with FIFA to include women's teams in regional tournaments. Almubarak's work was recognized by the UN Gender Equality Commission in 2001 as a model for cultural transformation through sports.