Tag Archives: Shaheen Akhtar – World Karate Federation Referee

Asian Games: Mumbai’s hijab-clad woman named ‘Officiating Referee’ for Karate

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Mumbai, MAHARASHTRA:

The hijab-clad Karate maestro Shaheen Akhtar, 52, barely looks what she is — a 4-time National Champion in Karate, chopping her way surgically in all top events worldwide, is now appointed the first and only woman ‘Officiating Referee’ at the ongoing 19th Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games in China.

Packing up her bags to serve as the International Technical Official or Officiating Referee, Shaheen is a smiling but simple granny whose daughter Sana Hava and son Ayaan Ansari are also National Champions in Karate.

She learned her first Karate kicks, stances, punches, blocks and chops aged 13 while a schoolgirl at the Christ Church School, Byculla, excelled while studying for her B.Com degree from H.R. College, Churchgate and loved it enough to make it a full-fledged professional career as a ‘karateka’.

Over four decades since, she has punched her way from Youth League to Premier League to South Asian Championships to Asian Championships to Commonwealth Championships to World Championship events globally, earning medals and honours for her discipline and laurels for the nation, both as a participant and as a referee.

“In Hangzhou, I shall be the Officiating Referee for all events of Karate at the men’s and women’s events scheduled between October 5-7, with top champions participating from 42 Asian countries… It’s a very crucial responsibility,” said Shaheen softly, in a chat with IANS.

Discussing her upcoming challenges as Officiating Referee, Shaheen said that “handling pressure” will be the most critical part of her assignment — when over two billion pairs of eyes from all over Asia will scrutinise her every move and decision.

“All countries are coming there and vying for the medals… Besides the top-class champions from all countries in the ring, there will be top games experts from different countries, sports officials, VIPs, judges and viewers in the stadium and at their homes… Any wrong decision on my part can lead to havoc right inside the stadium,” Shaheen added.

Inside the ring, when the medal-hungry champions from different competing nations would be lunging at each other, the experience will be another trial even for Shaheen, herself an established and acclaimed figure in the sport.

“My job will be to control these rivals in the ring, command them to obey and adhere to the rules of the games, if they falter then there are levels of warnings, penalties, etc. to rein them in… And all under the watchful eyes of many,” Shaheen smiled.

Only on rare occasions, the moderator ‘Kansa’ (Match Supervisor) intervenes and also equally rarely the ‘third umpire’ or the video review supervisor, mainly while appealing for points is resorted to, she explained patiently, without clenching her deadly fists or flailing her arms.

In her new role, the former 4-time National Champion, 6-time Maharashtra Champion, a 8th Degree Black-Belt holder, Shaheen is also the highest and most qualified World Karate Federation and Asian Karate Federation female Referee in the country and in South Asia.

Now, Shaheen is passing on the baton to the gen-next through SAMA (Shaheen’s Academy of Martial Arts) affiliated to Karate India Organisation, and striving to groom future state-national-international champions and referees.

“I hope my long journey inspires the younger generations to take up Karate as a serious and viable career option… India has tremendous untapped potential and there could be many young champs waiting in the wings to grab their moment of glory given the right opportunity…I am always here to help anybody,” Shaheen declared.

source: http://www.muslimmirror.com / Muslim Mirror / Home> India> Indian Muslims> Sports / September 25th, 2023

Gathering of hijab-wearing women to break barriers, bust misconceptions

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Events, Exhibitions, Conferences (wef. Nov 18th, 2021), Sports, Women/Girls(since May26-2021), , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

INDIA:

Callisthenics performer, international karate referee, biker, calligrapher who don the headscarf by choice to share stage at YB Chavan auditorium on World Hijab Day

Packing a punch: Shaheen Akhtar, the first female karate referee in south Asia, with her students. (Right)

On Instagram, 19-year-old Haleema Momin calls herself ‘Hijabi Beast’. The athlete from Jogeshwari who performs callisthenics stands out not only for her choice of career but also her attire.

“People who don’t know about Islam assume that hijab is a sign of oppression. For me, the hijab brings a sense of security, strength and dignity. I get a lot of support and attention because of my hijab,” said Ms. Momin, who is trained in powerlifting and martial arts.

Extraordinary feats

The teenager, who works as a personal trainer, is all set to perform a range of moves like the headstand, handstand, superman push-ups and flips at YB Chavan auditorium on February 1, World Hijab Day. She will share stage with an international karate referee, a biker, a calligrapher and other women who wear the hijab by choice and take pride in it.

The first-of-its-kind event has been organised by the non-profit Al Hadi Organisation with the aim of shattering the popular belief that the hijab is an obligation and not a choice. “I started wearing the hijab at the age of 41. It was a sudden consciousness that dawned upon me and I became a hijabi,” said Mazgaon resident Shaheen Akhtar, a World Karate Federation referee and the first female karate referee in south Asia. Ms. Akhtar was lucky that in the same year, 2014, the World Karate Federation introduced the hijab as a part of the attire for referees. Her 26-year-old daughter, who holds an MBA and works with a multinational company, does not wear a hijab. She said, “My mother always told me that our religion calls for it, but never forced me to wear the hijab. I made my own choice and I will let my daughter make her own choice too.”

The event also aims at highlighting the bias against hijabis in schools, colleges and workplaces. “It took so many years for television channels to have hijabi anchors. Why?,” asked 29-year-old Fatema Zaidi Mirza, an anchor with Channel WIN (World Islamic Network) and one of the presenters at the February 1 event. Ms. Mirza will also share her own story of being asked to remove her headscarf while in school, which later resulted in her parents filing a court case. “Even today, there are so many schools that do not allow Muslim girls to wear the hijab and women are asked to remove it at many places,” she said.

Shabana Sadik Husein Pattawala, founder of Al Hadi Organisation, said the event will bring together women from all Muslim sects. She said, “The message we want to spread is that women can do wonders wearing a hijab, and wearing it does not hide their talent. The speakers and performers at the event will bear testimony to this fact.”

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Mumbai / by Jyoti Shelar / January 29th, 2020