Being a woman in sports is unqualifiedly challenging, even in the hyped ones like tennis. Not only is there lesser pay than their male counterparts, physical sports demand subverting every expectation heaped on women across societies- doing heavy work, making the body break the conventionally feminine mould, being competitive, and making their own choices… sportswomen battle the consequences every moment of their existence. And being a South Asian woman in sports is a different ballgame altogether, as even male children are discouraged from playing too much in aspiring middle-class families.
But Dr Amna Khan, Senior Lecturer in consumer behaviour and retailing at Manchester Metropolitan University Business School, is a superwoman (though part of her point today is to insist that other women could do it too). Because after giving up on her love for sports like zillions of South Asian children to focus on her studies, she returned after a prestigious corporate PhD and motherhood (among many, many other things) as a confident woman to give a fresh breath of life to those old feelings, this time in powerlifting. But it still wasn’t easy, of course. As she told Asian Voice in an interview, “I was a non-gym goer who went to the gym to lose pregnancy weight as I had broken my right shoulder in a road accident. I discovered a passion and love for lifting heavy weights which resulted in a disciplined process of training. Generally, people don’t associate heavy lifting with females – even less so with Asian females, and people did discourage me and ask questions.”
Battling Long Covid
What made her return to sports even more remarkable was that she achieved her sporting glories after battling long Covid. In July 2022, she became the first British Pakistani to become the British Champion Powerlifter. She achieved a British deadlift record at the British Championship by lifting 158 kilos whilst being under 52 kgs body weight. In her journey towards that, she competed in two competitions, with two wins and a record deadlift at each, also securing the regional and national deadlift record. “Long Covid impacted me – it reduced my strength by 40 per cent. It was a real shock. I had to believe in myself, focus my mindset, treat each training session as a building back journey and trust the process that I would be strong if I remained consistent.” That her efforts paid off is an understatement.
Over the years, achieving well and achieving a lot has only become second nature. Talking about balancing her profession (which she loves by the way- her foray into retail began after falling in love with studying consumer behaviour in her shop job after school) with a passion as demanding as powerlifting, she told us, “It is a juggling act. Strength sport is competitive and you constantly have to challenge yourself and stay committed. I am very fortunate to have the support of my family, but I also focus on time management to ensure that I can deliver on all of my commitments.”
Patriarchy did catch up once with this fighter of a woman though- she could not return to swimming.
“I loved physical education at school, my favourite sports were running and swimming – I taught myself to swim in the school lessons and as I grew older, running became my go-to exercise,” she told us. But being an immigrant Muslim in Britain meant in her time, she could not choose a swimming costume aligning with her religious beliefs. In as recently as 2021, the Norwegian beach handball women’s team was fined for refusing to wear the mandated bikini bottoms and turning up in shorts instead. Women as famous and successful as Serena Williams and Sania Mirza have been in trouble for exerting their clothing choices while playing. For the young Amna Khan, it simply meant giving up swimming. But Khan believes that things are looking up: ”The sporting narrative is changing, we have just witnessed leading brands developing their versions of hijab and focusing more on the religious identity of Muslims. There is also a growing desire to represent more inclusive gym wear for women who prefer to show less skin and wear looser gym wear.” Today, her body is her own. Talking about her reason for choosing strength sport specifically, she said: “I was intrigued to see what my body could do and ventured to the weight room and discovered an exciting challenge. I quickly learnt about stereotypes of women in strength sports and Asian cultures. All I want now is to continue challenging the status quo and pave the way for future generations!”
So, is there hope for South Asian women venturing into sports?
Definitely, she says. “We need to have more inclusive gym spaces where women feel comfortable to train, more support on lifting and using gym equipment so they know they won’t get hurt, and a community of support – which encourages fitness, health and wellbeing.” But her best advice is an expected one from a woman of her calibre: “Find your passion and give it your all - anything is possible! Whatever you do, be consistent and disciplined and your hard work will bear fruits.”
