AMMAN — Dana Fidda, became the first Jordanian woman to go pro outside the Kingdom after representing
Bahrain’s Riffa Club, which went on to win the local league this year.
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“It was an unforgettable experience and I would like to thank Al-Fuheis for giving me this historical opportunity. I hope that such opportunities continue to come up, especially since we have great talents, which have started to get their fair share of promotion among major clubs, considering the large number of appearances at international events,” Fidda told Jordan News.
Alongside her athletic career, Fidda, 34, is a mother of two and a project manager at a local bank. As a single mother, she believes that employers need to play a more active role in supporting female athletes who need to balance work, motherhood and an athletic career.
“There is a lack of cooperation at work. Athletes have responsibilities and need the time to give their best, but this is not what we see in reality,” Fidda explained, adding: “Working and playing basketball is a major challenge for me, especially since my job takes up much of my time, which often forces me to show up late to practice or miss training all together on several occasions.
Motherhood poses another challenge for female athletes who often have to sacrifice part of or the entirety of their athletic careers to balance work and family. “If either of my daughters is sick or has an issue, I need to stay home, which means I need to miss training,” Fidda noted.
Through a passion for sports media, Fidda hopes to highlight the issues of female athletes, and to that end has founded “She Athlete”. According to its official Instagram page, She Athlete hopes to “reset and challenge the future of women’s sports.” The initiative acts as a platform for female athletes to speak up about their problems and the hurdles that continue to face women’s sports.
Fidda first found her footing in
basketball at 13, when she joined the Orthodox Club. She recounts: “I was very tall but training back then was not as professional as it is now. Training has become more organized and beneficial. I worked hard on myself and developed my performance a lot and I feel really proud of having become a role model for young athletes.”
The athlete hails from a family of professional
tennis players, who she says tried in vain to foster her passion for the game. “My beginnings were interesting. I come from an athletic family and have two siblings. My father, brother and sister play tennis professionally and have several achievements. They tried to get me into tennis but I found my passion and ambition in basketball,” Fidda said.
After nearly two decades of an uphill battle in sports, Fidda is still as determined as ever to push forward.
“I am always looking for new ways to train t o stay prepared. I do not see myself thinking about quitting at the moment, despite all the difficult circumstances I have gone through.”
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