03-03-2025
Sharjah Women's Sports Foundation celebrates 1st media graduates
Empowering women in sports media
In her speech at the ceremony, Her Excellency Hanan Al Mahmoud, Vice President of the Foundation, emphasised that the programme was in line with the vision of Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Chairperson of the Foundation, to strengthen women's representation in the sports media landscape. Al Mahmoud highlighted that Her Highness encouraged the development of female athletes who understand the importance of accurate media portrayal, which will in turn promote sports culture in a positive and educational way.
She added, "This diploma is a significant step towards empowering women to deliver insightful, innovative sports analysis. We congratulate all graduates and hope that this will pave the way for a stronger presence of women in sports studios, both locally and internationally."
Key programme elements
Her Excellency Moza Al Shamsi, Director of the Foundation, explained that the programme had two key components: a technical aspect, focusing on analysing match results and player performance using statistics, and a practical aspect, offering hands-on training in studios and the use of professional tools for data presentation. These skills help graduates provide well-rounded media content and improve sports analysis.
Al Shamsi also noted that participants were selected based on their sporting expertise, with backgrounds in various disciplines like fencing, volleyball, archery, and basketball. This diversity ensures analysts are equipped to understand and contribute to different sports perspectives.
Latifa Al Hosani: A step towards leadership
Latifa Al Hosani, former fencer and Board Member of the UAE Fencing Federation, expressed her pride in joining the programme. She said:
"This diploma builds on my journey from the Sports Leadership Programme. It has provided me with the analytical and media skills to expand my expertise in fencing. I now have scientific tools that I look forward to using on analysis platforms, especially since I hold leadership roles in fencing, which enhances my ability to make a larger impact'.
Latifa also shared that the programme introduced her to new analytical tools, enhancing her confidence in delivering informed sports content on camera.
Sports analysis in simplified technical language
Nadwa Al Suwan, a volleyball player for Sharjah Women's Sports Club and the UAE national team, as well as a technical follow-up executive at the foundation, explained how the diploma helped her improve her ability to deliver sports analysis in a clear, professional manner. She said:
"Previously, my emotions after the match influenced what I said during TV interviews on the field, and I was unable to provide a technical explanation that clearly represented the course of the game. But now, thanks to the diploma, I am able to deliver accurate, analytical readings in clear, simplified language that reaches a wide audience, even those who are not specialists. This helps educate them about the sport and spread its culture in an impactful way'.
She added, "I'm grateful to be part of this programme, in addition to the Sports Leadership Programme, through which the Sharjah Women's Sports Foundation provides us with all the opportunities to develop our competencies for various roles. This ongoing support reflects the foundation's vision of building a generation of female leaders and sports analysts capable of making effective contributions to both the sports and media landscapes."
Celebrating the achievement and recognising the graduates
The ceremony concluded with a recognition of the graduates and the presentation of their diplomas. The Sharjah Women's Sports Foundation expressed its pride in this achievement, marking another milestone in empowering women in sports analysis.
The diploma awarded participants an internationally recognised certificate from North Carolina University, enhancing their opportunities to contribute to analytical studios for both local and international sports events. The foundation plans to expand and further develop the programme in collaboration with more media and academic institutions in the future.
