Top female athletes on prioritising their education alongside their sporting careers
From the classroom to the football pitch, chess board and ski slope, how education helps athletes in competitions and in life.
Whether they’re competing on a football pitch, chess board or ski slope, top female athletes are in agreement on one thing: they wouldn’t have accomplished their great feats without an education.
For our Game Changers series, athletes from Egypt, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Madagascar, Venezuela and the U.K. tell us about the important lessons they learned in the classroom and how education has helped shape their careers.
(Courtesy of Aaliyah Powell)
“I believe education allows you to have choices, which is why it is so important. It helps to put you on a level playing field, allowing you to pursue whatever opportunities you decide! Not because you have to, but because you want to. Nobody can take education away from you. This is why I have chosen to prioritise my sporting career whilst also continuing my studies because education will allow me to have options in all stages of my life.”
— Aaliyah Powell, 17-year-old British taekwondo Junior World Champion
(Courtesy of Ana Karina Arrieche)
“Education has been the guiding star that has allowed me to stay true to myself both on a professional and personal level. I cannot control the salary inequalities in women's soccer and I cannot control how decision-makers set boundaries to women all over the world. However, education has given me control to become an advocate in a world filled with gender inequality. Education has empowered me to pursue my dreams on and off the field. I see the world in a different light thanks to education and I am better equipped to face it head on with no regrets and limitations.”
— Deyna Castellanos, 21-year-old Venezuelan Atlético Feminino football player and gender equality and education advocate
(Courtesy of Manal Rostom)
“Education is life. High school I feel, has played a huge role in my current life as a 40-year-old woman, teaching me everything about sport, character, discipline, values and morals. I look back and remember those days and realise how they shaped my personality. University and postgrads give you a shield no one can take away from you. It’s like your superpower weapon whether you end up putting it to use or not; you will always own it and it will always make you strong.”
— Manal Rostom, Egyptian Nike running ambassador and founder of Surviving Hijab
(Courtesy of Acumen Pictures)
“My love for the sport helped me to go to school. In Africa, many girls do not have the chance to receive an education, but thanks to success and visibility l gained with sports l was able to attend school. Now l donate part of my winnings to cover tuition costs for kids in rural Africa. This year l have sent 110 kids to school, with a target of sending 500. I race for education.”
— Tanya Muzinda, 15-year-old Zimbabwean motocross racer and education activist
(Courtesy of Pavel Mikheyev)
“Learning new things gives me joy, so education is what makes me happy. I am also grateful to have opportunities to apply my knowledge. Education makes me better, wiser, stronger and more confident. I think education is necessary for our society to develop and thrive. Everyone should have equal opportunities to get an education.”
— Dinara Saduakassova, Kazakhstani chess player, International Master and Woman Grandmaster
(Courtesy of Yasmeen Shabsough)
"In order to become a successful athlete, you should have three major components: courage, kindness and most importantly, knowledge. Your brain is a muscle, you must train it the same way you train your body muscles. And in order to win you have to stay fit mentally and physically. “
— Yasmeen Shabsough, Jordanian football player
(Courtesy of JD Photography)
“What I have learned in the classroom has helped me as a gamer in that I have been able to identify areas in the esports and gaming field that require regulation and more legal intervention. What I have learned as a gamer has helped in the classroom, especially with my history. My playing Assassin’s Creed has taught me about different historical periods like the Italian Renaissance, which has been really helpful in my diplomacy classes when learning about the history of diplomacy and helpful in picking up Italian.”
— Sylvia Gathoni, Kenyan pro gamer and law student
(Courtesy of Mialitiana Clerc)
“In Alpine skiing, you travel a lot and see a lot of people. Education teaches me to speak other languages so that you can travel and communicate with any skier. It is important to communicate with others because we grow by going outside our comfort zones and increasing our knowledge and circle of friends.”
— Mialitiana Clerc, student and Madagascar’s first female Olympic skier
(Courtesy of Aya Ayman)
“I am the first and youngest Egyptian, African and Arabian female athlete to get a world para-swimming medal. I have about 15 international medals and more than 80 national medals and four African records. I’ve participated in three world championships and qualified for the 2020 Paralympics in Tokyo. I am also a freshman at the American University in Cairo majoring in international marketing communications with a double minor in business and theatre. Without education, I wouldn't be able to achieve all my goals in my beloved sport and other different sectors. It's a challenge for me to do both things well, but I never give up on the idea of achieving success in both my studies and my sports.”
— Aya Ayman, 20-year-old Egyptian Paralympic swimmer
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