Afrah Borji – Women in Development and Peace
“Schools are the primary environment where the values and culture of sports are instilled in students’ minds, and their talents in all fields, including sports, are honed, especially since the presence of qualified and highly experienced sports teachers and trainers helps in discovering and developing female students’ talents scientifically and correctly,” stated Intisar Salam, Deputy Principal of Balqis Basic Secondary School, to Women in Development and Peace newspaper.
Salam continues to elaborate on the role of schools in promoting sports, especially for girls, highlighting some of the challenges this field faces. These challenges include the lack of safe sports clubs at the governorate level, which poses a significant obstacle to girls’ participation in sports, making schools the only available environment for them to practice. She emphasizes the importance of considering girls’ privacy when engaging in sports.
Regarding the role of schools in instilling the concept of sports under these difficult circumstances, Salam says, “Schools face a significant burden in combining their primary tasks in education with the responsibility of promoting sports among students. This forces schools to add extra sports classes to their schedule, which may burden both students and teachers.”
She points out that there is a severe shortage of qualified sports staff in schools, as well as sports tools and equipment. This hinders the effective promotion and development of sports and poses an obstacle to girls’ participation in sports in a healthy and engaging manner.
Sports and its Positive Role in the Educational Process
Teacher Amira Al-Nahari emphasized in her speech the importance of sports in the lives of female students and its role in stimulating the body, enhancing self-confidence, and developing the mind. She believes that schools, whether governmental or private, should organize regular sports competitions for their female students in various games such as chess, jump rope, tennis, and other diverse sports. This provides them with an opportunity to develop their intellectual and creative skills, positively reflecting on their academic achievement. Sports are not exclusive to male students but are a right for all, both males and females.
Yusuf Ali Al-Khadhri, Director of National Teams Management at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and champion of the National Kung Fu team, confirmed the existing coordination between the Ministries of Youth and Sports and Education to promote school sports.
He explained that the forms of cooperation between the two ministries include implementing school sports activities sponsored by some sports federations under the supervision of the Ministry of Youth and Sports. This also includes establishing summer centers that organize sports, cultural, and artistic activities for students with direct support from the Ministry of Youth and Sports through the Child Care Fund.
Women’s Sports: Passion and Talent
Manar Khalid (pseudonym), a graduate of the Faculty of Physical Education from Hodeidah University, embodies an honorable example of Yemeni girls who have proven themselves in the field of sports. Their participation was not limited to school sports competitions but extended to the university level, where they chose to specialize in physical education.
Since she was a student at a girls’ school in Hodeidah Governorate, Manar stood out with her exceptional athletic abilities and remarkable physique, which qualified her to be one of the distinguished competitors in volleyball in school competitions that were sponsored and coordinated by the Ministry of Youth and Sports with the Ministry of Education.
Manar tells us that her passion for sports began at school when she discovered her athletic talent during physical education class. In one of the football classes, Manar drew the attention of the physical education teacher with her distinguished skills, which prompted the teacher to nominate her to participate in a school sports competition shortly after.
She continues, “We participated in a volleyball competition and won against three schools, and our school won first place in the district.”
Manar continues her inspiring story about her passion for sports from school to university. She chose to specialize in Physical Education to pursue her dreams. Today, she has reached professionalism in volleyball at the international level, having become part of a comprehensive volleyball team representing Yemen abroad.
Manar did not expect that circumstances would allow her to turn her passion into a profession. In 2017, her father traveled to work outside Yemen, which opened new horizons for her to pursue sports more professionally. She joined a club specializing in women’s sports and participated in forming a volleyball team. Thanks to her skills and determination, she managed to excel among the team’s players and became one of its key members.
Challenges in Sports
Intisar Salam, in her speech, points to the challenges facing school sports for girls, which include the lack of dedicated sports facilities for them in schools. She stresses that allocating an independent sports hall for girls contributes to providing a safe and appropriate environment for practicing sports. She highlights the importance of allocating weekly sessions that allow them to practice sports properly, as it is an essential part of building their capabilities. Additionally, she emphasizes the importance of encouraging girls to participate in sporting events, both inside and outside the school.
She indicates that the school represents the first source for preparing future generations, not only at the educational and academic levels but also at the sports level.
Athlete and Kung Fu player Yusuf Al-Khadhri shares his vision about the most important challenges facing sports in any society. He points out that the level of awareness and culture in society is low, and the lack of continuous sports activities in schools and sports clubs is a major factor in society’s lack of understanding of the importance of sports.
He adds, “There must be a suitable environment for practicing various sports, including gyms, academies, and well-equipped stadiums because decently providing them contributes to making young people enthusiastic about going through the experience and competing in sports.”
Solutions
Yusuf Ali Al-Khadhri emphasized the importance of supporting sports federations as a top priority to enhance the ministry’s role in developing the concept of sports among students and youth. In addition to the financial support provided by the Ministry of Youth and Sports to sports federations, the ministry implements a set of initiatives to enhance its role in spreading the culture of sports among different segments of society, especially students and youth.
These initiatives include signing cooperation agreements with schools by providing the necessary sports facilities within schools, such as gyms and various sports fields. This also includes providing everything that encourages young people to practice sports, in addition to activating external protocols and agreements with some countries to adopt the qualification of distinguished players from the national teams.
Future Plans
Athlete Jamal Al-Sabri highlights the absence of plans among sports institutions in Yemen. These plans would enhance women’s participation in various sports fields, whether as participants or as technical and administrative staff. This absence poses a significant obstacle to the advancement of Yemeni sports. However, he stressed the importance of developing plans to enhance women’s participation in sports, as part of a comprehensive plan to advance the reality of sports in Yemen.
He continues, “Women’s sports receive international support. I believe that Yemen has received significant support over the past twenty years, and some female athletes have achieved great achievements at the international level, which is good. But from my experience in sports, I know that the situation of women’s sports is in a bad state.”
He continues, “I also disagree with the existence of a women’s union separate from the official union for different games. While I believe that the women’s union may have previously helped enhance women’s participation in sports, it has become an obstacle due to the union’s control over women’s sports due to the current situation.”
He concludes, “We need exemplary sports institutions that operate according to rules and regulations, are managed jointly by elected administrative entities, and make women’s participation part of the programs of these federations. From my point of view, I think this is how it is supposed to be.”
