Fathimath Dheema Ali (Dhivehi: ފާތިމަތު ދީމާ ޢަލީ; born 14 September 2007) is a Maldivian table tennis player. She qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics, becoming the first Maldivian to qualify for the Olympics (previous entrants were on a quota) as well as the nation's first Olympic table tennis player.
| Fathimath Dheema Ali | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Dheema in July 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Native name | ފާތިމަތު ދީމާ ޢަލީ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 14 September 2007 Colombo, Sri Lanka | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 167 cm (5 ft 6 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 52 kg (115 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Table tennis career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing style | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
editDheema Ali was born on 14 September 2007 in Sri Lanka, to Maldivian parents.[1][2] When she was six, her father suggested she try out a sport, and after a badminton coach turned her down for being too short, she decided to try out table tennis.[2] She started the sport by playing on the dining table at her home.[3] While on a break from school at age eight, in 2016, she entered a tournament in Malaysia and won the under-11 competition.[3] Later in the year, she participated at the Sri Lanka junior national championship and won the under-10 tournament, also being ranked in the top four of the under-12 tournament.[3]
Her family moved to the Maldives in 2018 and Dheema Ali competed at the Maldivian National Championship.[3] In her second year at the event, she won the national championship, becoming the nation's youngest-ever winner.[3] Ranked the number one table tennis player in the Maldives, she was selected to both the junior and senior national teams.[3] In 2018, when she was 10 years old and in grade 5, she participated at the World Team Table Tennis Championships, setting the record for youngest-ever competitor; her teammate was a quarter-century older, at age 35.[2][4]
Later in 2018, Dheema Ali won silver at the South Asian Junior Table Tennis Championships in the under-12 event.[3] She qualified for the Asian Junior Table Tennis Championship and placed second.[3] Her medal made her the first international table tennis medalist for the Maldives, and qualified her for the World Junior Table Tennis Championship.[3] However, at the request of her parents, she passed over the world junior championships to represent the Maldives at the Indian Ocean Island Games.[3] There, at age 11, she won three gold medals, winning the singles, doubles and women's team events.[5] For her performance, the Maldivian government gifted her 535,000 MVR and began funding all her training.[5]
By April 2021, Dheema Ali was ranked by World Table Tennis as the eighth-best under-15 competitor in the world.[2] She participated at the 2021 Islamic Solidarity Games and won the bronze medal in the team event.[6] In 2022, she competed at the Commonwealth Games, winning the first match before losing the second.[2] She also was named the recipient of an International Olympic Committee (IOC) scholarship that year.[2][7] She was the Maldives flag bearer at the 2023 Indian Ocean Island Games and won three gold medals and a bronze.[2][8][9][10]
In May 2024, Dheema Ali won the singles event at the South Asian Qualification Tournament, thus qualifying her for the 2024 Summer Olympics.[11] She became the first person to ever qualify for the Olympics from the Maldives, as previous entrants were through a quota.[12]
In October 2024, Ali was awarded most honorable sportswomen of the year – Gold, as a part of the Maldives Sports Awards.[13]
References
edit- ^ "Fathimath Dheema Ali". 2022 Commonwealth Games.
- ^ a b c d e f g Gunston, Jo (22 August 2023). "Table tennis prodigy Fathimath Dheema Ali continues to make waves". Olympics.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Hamdhoon, Mohamed (20 December 2019). "Dheema: Gold Standard For Athletes". Maldives Insider – via Issuu.
- ^ Okusan, Olalekan (29 April 2018). "Full of hope, Fathimath Dheema Ali leads Maldives". International Table Tennis Federation.
- ^ a b "Govt to award MVR 535,000 to Maldives' TT wonder-kid". Avas. 11 September 2019.
- ^ "Islamic Solidarity Games". Swaythling Club International. 3 December 2017.
- ^ "އޮލިމްޕިކް ސްކޮލަޝިޕްގެ ދަށުން ދީމާގެ ތަމްރީންތައް ފްރާންސްގައި" [Dheema's training in France under Olympic scholarship]. Adhadhu (in Divehi). August 2022.
- ^ "Maldives' Women's Table Tennis Team Secures Gold at Indian Ocean Island Games". DhiDaily. 28 August 2023.
- ^ Amir, Rabeeha (5 September 2023). "Maldives wins gold and silver in table tennis singles: Dheema secures Gold, Rafa earns Silver". The Edition.
- ^ Zalif, Zunana (29 August 2023). "IOIG 2023: Maldives bags gold in table tennis mixed doubles event". Raajje TV.
- ^ "Table tennis teen Fathimath Dheema Ali becomes first Maldivian athlete to qualify for Olympics". Olympic Council of Asia. 16 May 2024.
- ^ "Historic Milestone for Maldivian Sports: Fathimath Dheema Ali Honored for Olympic Qualification". Maldives Olympic Committee. 26 May 2024.
- ^ "President confers the most prestigious awards of the 'Maldives Sports Awards 2024'". The President's Office. 17 October 2024. Retrieved 18 October 2024.