The Paris Olympics is witnessing real examples of the phrase “When dreams cannot afford excuses.” Several Olympic athletes share their experiences, victories, and challenges on Instagram. After her fencing event last week, Egypt’s Nada Hafez shared something surprising.
She revealed she had been fencing while seven months pregnant. Hafez wrote, “What appears to you as two players on the podium, they were actually three!” She explained it was her, her competitor, and her unborn baby. Hafez finished 16th, her best result in three Olympics.
Similarly, Azerbaijani archer Yaylagul Ramazanova, who was six-and-a-half months pregnant, also revealed her pregnancy on Instagram. She felt her baby kick before shooting a perfect 10.
Pregnant athletes competing in the Olympics and Paralympics are rare. Most stories involve athletes competing early in their pregnancies or not knowing they were pregnant, like U.S. beach volleyball star Kerri Walsh Jennings, who won gold while unknowingly five weeks pregnant.
Dr. Kathryn Ackerman, a sports medicine expert, says more pregnant athletes are competing now due to changing attitudes and better understanding. She notes that if an athlete is in good health and has no complications, it is safe to compete at a high level during pregnancy. However, she warns against high-risk sports like ski racing.
In sports with protective gear like fencing or less physically demanding ones like archery, there is no reason a pregnant woman can’t compete. The decision to compete while pregnant is both physically and emotionally challenging, unlike anything male athletes face.
Serena Williams famously won the Australian Open while pregnant and later took a break from tennis to grow her family, highlighting the tough choices female athletes make.
Combining motherhood with a sports career involves many factors, varying by sport and country. Dominican Republic track athlete Franchina Martinez notes that in her country, many female athletes retire early due to pregnancy.
At the Paris Olympics, reactions were mixed. Some admired Hafez’s bravery and determination, while others questioned the safety of competing while pregnant. Ultimately, the choice is personal, and many admire the courage of athletes like Hafez and Ramazanova.
American archer Casey Kaufhold praised Ramazanova, saying it was inspiring to see expecting mothers competing. She hopes this trend encourages more mothers to participate in sports.
Kaufhold added that it’s great for Ramazanova to tell her child one day, “Hey, I went to the Olympic Games and you were there, too.”
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