A nation proud: Maldives' TT prodigy makes history as first athlete to qualify for Olympics
This is the first time a Maldivian athlete has qualified for the Olympics.
Summary
This is the first time a Maldivian athlete has qualified for the Olympics.
Maldives' table tennis prodigy Fathimath Dheema Ali has made history as the first ever athlete from the island nation to qualify for the Olympics.
The 16 year old swept the Olympic qualification tournament in Nepal undefeated after high triumph over Sri Lanka's Bimandhy Bandara in the final.
This is the first time a Maldivian athlete has qualified for the Olympics. Maldives has largely been represented in swimming and track on automatic slots. In the 2012 and 2020 Olympics Maldives was represented in badminton on special slots.
Dheema's rise has been nothing short of meteoric. At the age of 12, she became the singles champion in the Indian Ocean Island Games. She also won the women's team event and doubles at the games that year.
Message of congratulations flooded social media as current and former athletes echoed the remarkable achievement of the young star.
President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu called Dheema's family on Wednesday evening and remarked on the outstanding accomplishment of a young Maldivian athlete playing against the top table tennis players in the South Asian region as a matter of great pride for the entire nation.
President also assured Dheema of his full support for this opportunity to compete in the Olympics and achieve great success, the president's office said.
