The artistic gymnast talks about her Olympic dream and the historical significance of having a Barbie doll moulded after her
The clock is ticking. Displaying a mesmerising combination of a physical agility, strength, and stamina, she executes the jumps, her body a vision of athletic grace on the balance beam, a look of concentration on her face. Finally, she lands on the floor with a perfectly executed twist and jump—and a wide smile on her face.
One can only imagine the breadth of exertions and emotions that an artistic gymnast like Farah Ann Abdul Hadi goes through during a competition—all that training culminating in trying to execute that one flawless routine. Living and breathing for 90 seconds of performance.
Road to the Olympics
It’s every athlete’s dream to compete at the Olympics, and for 26-year-old Farah Ann, it was a dream come true when she finally earned her spot in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, after the disappointment of missing out on the 2016 Rio Games by a 0.1 point margin.
When the Tokyo Games were postponed, Farah tried to see it as a blessing in disguise rather than another disappointment. She’s been in such an endless series of competitions, including the Olympic qualifiers in Germany and the SEA Games in the Philippines, that she simply had no time to let her body rest. “I was having shoulder injuries that I’ve been putting off getting treatment for, but with the postponement I had the chance to heal my shoulder and now I’m feeling a whole lot better as I don’t have pain when I train.”
Throughout Malaysia's lockdown, Farah and her fellow athletes kept on training at the national training centre in Bukit Jalil to stay motivated and fit to perform at the highest level.
For Farah, this hard-won accomplishment is the highlight of her 23-year-long career and is also her family’s triumph. “This meant that all the time, sacrifice and pain that I went through means something. And being able to repay my parents for all the sacrifices they’ve made and to make them proud is what I cherish the most out of this experience. Hopefully, they are able to be there and watch me perform because I am doing this for them. To have them there and experience the Olympic dream with me is the best thing that I can do to show them how much I appreciate them.”
