Roqaya Al-Gassra

Roqaya Al-Gassra (رقية الغسرة) (born September 6, 1982) [ [http://www.lequipe.fr/Athletisme/AthletismeFicheAthlete5000000000013368.html "Roqaya Al-Gassra"] , "L'Equipe"] , is a Bahraini athlete. She was one of the first women to represent Bahrain at the Olympic Games, by taking part in the women's 100 metres sprint at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=1887619 "Running into History"] , ESPN, September 25, 2004]

ESPN stated that Al-Gassra "overcame the objections of fundamentalists in her village" to participate. She ran with a head scarf and her body fully covered. [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=1887619 "Running into History"] , ESPN, September 25, 2004] She finished fifth in her heat, with a time of 11.49 seconds, and did not advance. [ [http://www.theage.com.au/olympics/articles/2004/08/20/1092972755333.html "From behind the veil"] , "The Age", August 24, 2004] A time of 11.43 seconds would have enabled her to qualify for the following round. [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950CEED6163EF932A1575BC0A9629C8B63 "SUMMER 2004 GAMES; Free at Last, Islamic Women Compete With Abandon"] , "New York Times", August 21, 2004] By 2006, she had improved her time to 11.34 seconds. [ [http://www.thehindu.com/2006/07/26/stories/2006072605731900.htm "Navpreet Singh and women's relay team top the list"] , "The Hindu", Juny 26, 2006]

In 2003, Al-Gassra had won gold in the 100 metre and 200 metre races at the Arabian Championships in Lebanon. [ [http://www.iaaf.org/news/magazine/newsid=38867.html "A first for Bahrain"] , International Association of Athletics Federation, June 1, 2007]

In 2004, prior to the Olympics, she won three silver medals, in the 60 metre, 200 metre and 400 metre races, at the Asian Indoor Championships in Iran. She also represented Bahrain in the 400 metre event at the World Indoor Championships in Budapest. [ [http://www.iaaf.org/news/magazine/newsid=38867.html "A first for Bahrain"] , International Association of Athletics Federation, June 1, 2007]

In 2006, Al-Gassra won the gold medal in the 200 metre race at the Asian Games, in Doha. This made her the first Bahraini-born athlete to win gold at a major international athletics competition extending beyond the Arab world. She also won bronze in the 100 metre race. [ [http://www.iaaf.org/news/magazine/newsid=38867.html "A first for Bahrain"] , International Association of Athletics Federation, June 1, 2007] [ [http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/11/sports/ME_SPT_ATH_Asian_Games_Athletics.php "Bahrain's Ruqaya Al Ghasara wins Asian Games 200, dedicates victory dedicated to all Muslim women"] , "International Herald Tribune", December 11, 2006] [ [http://74.125.39.104/search?q=cache:jqXAapAkyU8J:english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/A3E2CB0F-A9CA-4327-A07B-4675C98E13C7.htm+%22Al+Ghasara%22&hl=fr&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=fr "Glory for Al Ghasara"] , Al Jazeera, December 11, 2006] [ [http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=146930&version=1&template_id=49&parent_id=29 "Shaheen to miss Qatar Grand Prix"] , "Gulf Times", May 2, 2007] In 2007, she was scheduled to take part in the Pan Arab Games in Egypt, the Asian Championships in Lebanon and the IAAF World Championships in Osaka. [ [http://www.iaaf.org/news/magazine/newsid=38867.html "A first for Bahrain"] , International Association of Athletics Federation, June 1, 2007] She pulled out of the latter championships due to injury. [ [http://209.85.135.104/search?q=cache:BOg0ITtleDYJ:english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/B7A946F9-1AD4-40D6-BFF0-556F134FD475.htm+%22Al+Ghasara%22&hl=fr&ct=clnk&cd=11&gl=fr "Olympic dreams for Al Ghasara"] , Al Jazeera, February 15, 2008]

In 2008, Al-Gassra won gold in the 60 metre race at the Asian Indoor Championships in Doha, setting a new championships record with a time of 7.40 seconds. [ [http://209.85.135.104/search?q=cache:BOg0ITtleDYJ:english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/B7A946F9-1AD4-40D6-BFF0-556F134FD475.htm+%22Al+Ghasara%22&hl=fr&ct=clnk&cd=11&gl=fr "Olympic dreams for Al Ghasara"] , Al Jazeera, February 15, 2008]

She qualified to compete in the 100 metre and 200 metre events at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing [ [http://209.85.135.104/search?q=cache:BOg0ITtleDYJ:english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/B7A946F9-1AD4-40D6-BFF0-556F134FD475.htm+%22Al+Ghasara%22&hl=fr&ct=clnk&cd=11&gl=fr "Olympic dreams for Al Ghasara"] , Al Jazeera, February 15, 2008] , but only competed in the 200 metre race where she reached the semi-finals. [http://results.beijing2008.cn/WRM/ENG/BIO/Athlete/6/8003846.shtml AL-GASSRA Roqaya] , Athlete Biography, beijing2008.cn] She was her country's flagbearer at the Games' opening ceremony. [ [http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=225153&Sn=SPOR&IssueID=31134 "Bahrain gear up for Games"] , "Gulf Daily News", August 1, 2008]

External links

* [http://www.roqaya.com/ www.roqaya.com] (Flash, loading time)
* [http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/5773347/ "Islamic women making history in Athens"] , Associated Press, August 20, 2004
* [http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=lukas/061219 "Nike swoosh raises debate"] , ESPN (about al-Gassra's "corporate-branded hijab")

References