Amar Hadid is an Australian skateboarding competitor from Sydney. She is also a proud Muslim with Lebanese heritage.
Many new sports are being introduced in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, including Ramp Skateboarding, and 20 year-old Hadid has her sights set on representing Australia at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Naturally a Goofy footer she describes herself as “Just another Australian skateboarder that has a hand plant and air game far from the rest.”
She competes in the Vert World Championships and is sponsored by Skate Australia and Monster.
Hadid is also an activist and has been on record via an SBS World News interview in 2017, when the then 18year old was awarded a scholarship for her skateboarding talent. She was in her first year at the University of Sydney, with ambitions to study medicine.
Hadid has competed in California at an international meet finishing third in the Vert category and fifth in the Bowl. But personal success isn’t the only thing that drives her.
She told SBS World News in 2017 she wants issues such as child slavery, terrorism and women’s rights to be acted upon by everyone that cares. “Do something about it, and don’t be silent,” is her advice.
That’s exactly what she did after the 2014 Lindt Cafe siege. She was so disturbed by the events she wrote a rap song expressing her anger that innocent lives had been lost. “No true Muslim who honestly believes in God and believes in Islam would ever do anything like that,” she said.
The key to a rich life for Hadid is doing what she loves. She’s already aiming for the Olympics as a skateboarder and points to the power of doing something you’re connected with. “When you do something you love, you do it well,” she said.
She is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Science and Arabic, with the long-term goal to study medicine. But, right now the prospect of appearing at an Olympics when skateboarding makes its debut in Tokyo is her focus. “To be standing at the Olympics standing in front of everyone representing my country, to get that feeling, that’s the feeling I want to feel,” she said.
Hadid has observed Ramadan since the age of six, even though her faith doesn’t require little children to do so. She admits it isn’t easy not eating or drinking during daylight hours. “Of course it’s got it’s challenges and you do get hungry, but it reminds you of what Ramadan is,” she said.
