Game On!
Breaking Period Barriers for the Passion of the Game!
Every month for a week, most girls in the Middle East and around the world face stigma and taboo or don’t have the supplies, or sometimes the knowledge, to manage their menstrual cycle.
For some this means missing out on social activities, school and sports.
But it does not have to be that way! On May 28th, Menstrual Hygiene Day, we celebrate girls in the region who have realized their dreams – overcoming social pressure and the challenges of managing their menstruation so that they can stay in the game and realize their dreams.
Syrian athlete Sarah Abd ElBak joined hands with four other women to start a team of rugby in her hometown of As-Suwayda.
At first, Abd Elbaki had no knowledge of the game’s rules, the shape of the ball, or how the field looked. “I thought I would go try it and never come back again. But once I grabbed the rugby ball, I was unable to quit the game,” she said.
Her love of the game pushed her to become responsible for developing and spreading rugby in Syria.
“I wanted to break gender barriers and inspire others to follow our footsteps,” Abd Elbaki said.
She became the captain of her national team, a coach and a referee.
She also served as an assistant coach for the men’s national team and became the first woman to referee a domestic 15s match.[1]
In 2020, she became one of 12 recipients of the World Rugby Women’s Executive Leadership Scholarship.
Changing Social Attitudes
In the beginning, her peers wondered why she would want to play rugby. Her family were her sole supporter.
But over time, Abd Elbaki and her colleagues began competing regionally and grabbing people’s and media’s attention.
“The more we played, the more we gained support and acceptance of the game among our peers and the society,” she explained.
Today, Syria has now four women’s rugby teams.
Role Model for the Younger Generation
Abd Elbaki said when she started there was no role model to follow.
“I felt I was facing the whole society alone since the game was still new and I had no one to follow or get guidance from,” Abd Elbaki said.
Today she is a role model for the future generation across Syria, the Middle East and Asia.
“I want to grab younger players from their hand and direct them to where they should focus their goals and dreams,” she said.
Strategies to Spread the Game
Abd Elbaki raises awareness about the game in order to attract more female players to join.
She organizes events and games in her area and across Syria, inviting people to come and watch the game.
“My aim is to encourage people to be part of the game and to see that this game is not about contact, but rather that it is all about safety,” she explained.
Abd Elbaki is also using social media to spread more knowledge about the game, and film the girls and their matches “so that people could see the kind of fun and healthy atmosphere we are living in”.
Menstruation and Health Care Education
Abd Elbaki admitted that menstrual issues remain taboo for many players.
There are still girls who shy away from discussing the menstrual cycle because their families did not talk openly about their period and other health matters, she said.
Abd Elbaki explained that the menstrual cycle never “stopped me from competing or feeling any difference.
“It is natural and part of our life. My mother told me about it when I was 11 so that I would be ready and accepting and I try to convey the same message to the girls who do not have a lot of knowledge about it,”
Abd Elbaki said.
Her advice to the young girls is not to be afraid form anything because “it will prevent you from achieving and accomplishing your dreams”.
Karate Girl
Turning to Egypt, 15-year-old Sondos Saadi juggles her time between karate and volleyball competitions to reach her dream of becoming a national champion.
Sondos also manages to squeeze in time dedicated to encouraging her peers to get involved in sports activities to empower themselves and their communities.
Coming from the city of Aswan, one of the upper Egypt governorates that is known for age-old traditions, Saadi joined a UNICEF-supported national initiative entitled Dawwie,[2] the first National Girls’ Empowerment Initiative established in 2019. She quickly become the youngest trainer to engage with her peers and encourage them to participate in sports activities.
Saadi also participates in one of UNICEF’s Sports for Development (S4D) programs,[3] namely "Maharty…Lyaqty", which is being implemented in partnership with the government, civil society, and young people themselves.
"I am proud to be the youngest trainer of the Dawwie initiative and an ambassador of the "Maharty...Lyaqty," Saadi said.[4]
She expressed how she learned to deal with challenges, express her views and discuss her thoughts with her peers and her parents.
“Establishing a connection between “Dawwie” and “Marhrty Lyaqty”, makes me happy to encourage my friends to acquire life skills, play sports, inspire one another, and pridefully live each minute of their lives,” Saadi stated.
Family Backing
Inspired by her older sister and with the full backing of her parents, Saadi started playing karate at the age of 10.
But Saadi was faced with some social resistance early on in her life.
“My parents were not athletes so they wanted us to be what they could not be although my friends and our surrounds were not in favor of girls playing sports,” she said.
But she managed to implant her love for the game in the hearts of her friends and some people in her community who “used to think that this game is only for men”.
“I love this game because it gave me confidence and I was able to convince people around me that karate is a sport for all,” the one in three female siblings, added.
Digital Life Reflections
Saadi completed the Dawwie digital literacy online training where she was able to communicate and access networks online all while protecting herself to navigate the vast internet universe safely.
“I enjoy meeting my friends who take part in the “Dawwie" storytelling circles[5] to reflect on our lives, tell our stories, and share our experiences,” added Saadi.
Becoming a World Champ
With one belt to go in her record, Saadi is hoping to enter international competition soon.
“I have only the black belt left to achieve in a few months because of my age and after that, I am ready to compete and become a world champ,” she added.
The Egyptian federation is extremely supportive when it comes to paving the way for young women to achieve their dreams, says Saadi, adding “the focus should always be on altering society’s attitudes towards women engaging in sports”.
Saadi said she was able to change some people’s attitudes toward the game, “but we still need to work on changing the society’s beliefs and attitudes that still work to control women and their future choices, including our desire to play sports”.
“I believe it is up to us to decide our future and what kind of sports, education and other life choices,” she added.
For that reason, Saadi decided also to play volleyball as a second sport in hopes that one day she will compete internationally with the Egyptian Women’s National Volleyball team.
She had a simple message for her peers: “Girls should find themselves in any sport they like and disregard any criticism or judgment”.
Menstruation and Health Care Education
Saadi said the menstrual cycle was never an issue or a hurdle in her sports career.
“My period is not a source of shame for me because my mom and older sister explained everything surrounding health issues at an early stage of my life,” Saadi said.
On the contrary, Saadi added. “When I have my period, I go to my coach and tell him that today I only want arms practice and he immediately understands and supports me”.
Saadi explained that some of her teammates are still shy to address the menstrual cycle because their families did not convey the right message to these girls.
“We need to use social media to educate the public about menstruation and health care matters and explain that it is a normal matter,” Abd Elbaki said.
“We also need to continuously talk about it so that it becomes a normal and acceptable matter for everyone in our society,” Saadi added.
Abd Elbaki and Saadi are an inspiration:
Girls everywhere can grow and expand their horizons through sports, and nothing can get in their way. Girls stay in the game!
[1] https://www.women.rugby/news/625852/sarah-abd-elbaki-womens-executive-leadership-scholarship-interview
[2] Dawwie – an Arabic action verb that means to echo and reverberate- aims that all the girls in Egypt will fully enjoy all their rights by 2030. Dawwie is a multi-stakeholder’s initiative to advocate for girls’ empowerment through enhanced access to quality services, skills development, and opportunities to participate and be heard (https://www.dawwie.net/en)
[3] The program aims to strengthen the life skills of young people through different sports and physical activities. Sports for Development national skills development curriculum, including the community coach curriculum, to promote gender equality and social cohesion using the Life Skills and Citizenship Education Regional Framework and building on the regional PEER approach (young people are Protected, Educated, Employable and Responsible (https://www.unicef.org/belarus/en/sport-development)
[4] Interview with Sondos Saadi (via Zoom), 7 May 2023
[5] More than 500,000 girls, boys, parents and community members engaged with the Dawwie face to face activities such as storytelling circles, intergenerational dialogue, role plays and sport. Over 45,000 boys and girls aged 10-24 years old completed the Dawwie digital literacy training in partnership with the Ministry of Youth and Sports’ Meshwary Program
