Member of the Bahrain Women's Sports Committee, Sheikha Hayat Bint Abdul Aziz Al Khalifa, was recently elected Chairman of the Women and Sports Committee of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). Her appointment comes after she was elected to the General Assembly in Bangkok under the patronage of Sheikh Ahmad Fahad AlSubah of Kuwait. Her accomplishment has been described as a landmark achievement for Bahraini sports in general and women's sports in particular.
Sheikha Al Khalifa’s OCA appointment is the latest in a series of roles and achievements in what has been a long and fruitful career for her. Amongst her main accomplishments is the Women's and Sports Award from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which she won in 2015, and the Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Sports Innovation, which she was given in 2012. Sheikha Al Khalifa also holds many important positions such as her membership in the IOC Athletes Committee and Chairperson of the Women's Sports Committee of the Arab National Olympic Committee.
The female powerhouse is also a member of the Organizing Committee for Women's Sports in the GCC and a member of the jury of the Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Women's Sports Award. She has participated in numerous conferences, meetings, and sports forums, and has chaired many sports delegations on women's sport and table tennis.
Sheikha Al Khalifa began her career as a tennis player. From there, she gradually took on a number of roles within the field until she became president of the Bahrain Table Tennis Federation, a member of the Olympic Committee board, and a member of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports. In addition to her impressive career journey, she was awarded the First Order of Excellence in 2002 and the Bahrain Second Class Order for the year 2001.
