Sport Business researcher awarded Women and Sport achievement diploma from the IOC
Doctoral researcher, Shaikha Hussa bint Khalid Al Khalifa, has been awarded the ‘Women and Sport’ achievement diploma by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Each year, the IOC Women and Sport Awards are presented to women, men or organisations who have made remarkable contributions to the development, encouragement and reinforcement of women and girls’ participation in sport. The winners’ work to promote gender equality through different projects is also supported with a grant to help them continue and extend their work. Shaikha Hussa bint Khalid Al Khalifa, doctoral researcher from the Institute for Sport Business, has received the award in recognition of her outstanding contribution to promoting the development and participation of women and girls in sport.
The award came as a result of Hussa’s efforts in launching women’s football in the Arabian Gulf region, specifically within her home country of Bahrain in 2003. Hussa’s passion for sport and gender equality enables her to be a real trailblazer within the industry, inspiring thousands of girls and women to follow their passion for sport from all parts of the world. Hussa has already made groundbreaking achievements in her home country Bahrain and has even helped establish the Bahrain National football team and women’s league.
Since then, Hussa has been appointed as the first woman to hold a board seat on the Union of Arab Football Associations and the first woman to be elected to the Bahrain Football Association Board of Directors and is currently on the board of the national Olympic committee.
Hussa’s talents don’t end there, not only is she a sporting force to reckoned with, she is also about to be published in in the Journal of Global Sport Management in an article entitled: Adapting to Local Context and Managing Relationships: A Case Study of a Multinational SDP Partnership in Bahrain.
Speaking of the award, Hussa said: “I wanted to create opportunities that weren’t available to me as a girl who had a passion for football. Today, seeing that develop in my region has been very rewarding.”
Hussa’s PhD supervisor, Dr Holly Collison, said of Hussa’s achievement: “Hussa is really breaking boundaries in her home country Bahrain and the GCC region and I am so pleased she is being recognised for this.”
To find out more about Hussa’s research, please visit her profile.
To find out more about the IOC’s ‘Women and Sport’ awards, please visit the IOC website.