By Fatima AbdulKarim
RAMALLAH, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- Setting an example through hard work and dedication, 11-year-old Maya Khalil set foot into the Palestinian youth swimming team after winning five races in three consecutive national competitions.
The young swimmer became the center of attention after winning the events, to add to her collection of over 30 gold medals she had won since the age of eight.
Khalil proudly spread her medals over her bed, as she explained to Xinhua that she set new personal records for herself after winning four 50-meter races in various forms (freestyle, breaststroke, butterfly and backstroke) and a 100-meter breaststroke race.
At that point, Khalil caught the attention of the national swimming federation, which immediately invited her to join the Ramallah youth team as a top national qualifier.
"I was so happy when I realized I had narrowed my new record by almost 10 seconds this time," Khalil said. "I know we fall short in too many areas, but I'm excited to train and join the national youth team."
Raed Milad, vice president of the Palestinian swimming federation, told Xinhua there are over 80 swimmers who qualify from 14 teams in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. They train in 25-meter pools, because there is no 50-meter pool in Palestine.
"I believe Maya will have a remarkable future with her skill," he said.
Milad lamented the lack of a swimming infrastructure in Palestine, highlighting the lack of basic facilities such as internationally-standardized starting platforms.
"We are not short of emerging talents," he said.
As news of Khalil's achievement spread, she encouraged many of her schoolmates in the Ramallah district to take up swimming training and join the local youth team.
"It's very important to learn how to swim because it's a very important life skill, and everybody should be able to swim, not necessarily for winning a gold medal." said Khalil.
The new team now has eight members who train twice a week in the West Bank city of Ramallah, while Khalil continues to train for one and a half hours on a daily basis.
Khalil's mother, Dina Jawhar, said that her daughter's passion for swimming has grown significantly in the past year, in which she has trained daily at half-Olympic pools in Ramallah, focusing on her stamina and on technique.
"It made us so happy to watch her speed during the race, we were truly anxious, but really she made us proud," Jawhar said. "This achievement made us believe that hard work pays off, even amidst a lack of appropriate infrastructure to help our children achieve their dreams."
"The spillover effect of Maya's achievement is that there are more and more youths daring to try swimming, despite the lack of adequate training conditions in all of the West Bank," she added, urging local authorities, sports teams, unions and parents to look out for distinguished talents who "can beat the odds, when given the chance."
Palestine has participated six times in the Olympic Games beginning in 1996, when just two Palestinian athletes took part in the 1996 Atlanta Games.
Since then, the number of Palestinian athletes at the Olympics has risen steadily, and at the 2016 Rio Games Palestine had six athletes, including two swimmers.
