TWO of Bahrain’s most promising and exciting swimmers Alzain Tareq and Fatema Al Mahmeed are preparing themselves to take a shot at the Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympics in August.
Both Alzain, 11, and Fatema, 16, are talented swimmers with a bright future ahead of them. But only one will get a chance to go to Rio and that will be decided by the world swimming association FINA next week.
The duo featured in the World Swimming Championship in Kazan last year where Alzain at 10 became the youngest-ever swimmer to take part in a world championship.
Daughter of Bahraini professional swimmer Tareq Juma, Alzain took up the sport when she was five.
“When my dad used to go to the swimming association to teach swimming, I used to go with him and swim. That’s when I really liked the sport and decided to continue,” Alzain said.
The young athlete, who is a grade six student at Abdulrahman Kanoo International School, looks up to Hungarian swimmer Katinka Hosszu as a role model.
“Being the daughter of a professional swimmer, I’m always urged to try and get better and better. Even when I get a personal best time, he still expects me to break it,” Alzain explained.
Fatema, on the other hand, started swimming only at 14.
“I never used to follow swimming as a sport when I was younger. But when we were kids, my mother used to take me and my brother Ahmed to learn swimming and I enjoyed it a lot,” Fatema explained.
Seriously
“When I grew up I decided it was time to take up some sport seriously and since I had already enjoyed swimming before I thought about going to the association and taking it professionally,” Fatema said.
“The World Swimming Championship was my first international competition and knowing that I can even get a shot at the Olympic Games excited me.
“The Olympics is such a big event and just being in it will be great. You get to meet so many different athletes from different sports. We’ll all be in one place,” Fatema said.
Fatema is a grade 11 student at Ibn Khuldoon National School and one day hopes to study at the RCSI – Medical University of Bahrain - to become a doctor.
Both swimmers train under Bahrain Swimming Association’s Belarusian coach Aliaksandr Karpaliou. Both are concentrating on 50m freestyle.
“I always think about the Olympics. I just want to do my best there and get a personal best,” Fatema said.
Alzain has seen a lot of media pressure in Kazan and is expecting more of it if she gets to go to the Olympics.
“When I went to Kazan, everywhere I walk I would be stopped by someone who wanted to do an interview. There was a time when I stood for 45 minutes after a race just giving interviews. I didn’t want that and I was walking away but they would always pull me back,” Alzain explained.
“I’m really excited to go to Rio de Janeiro and I know the media’s attention will be even more over there,” she concluded.
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