Emirati’s Women’s Month: Empowering the Next Generation of Girls Through Sport

An interview with the founder of GMNSM on empowering young girls through sport in the UAE – his athletic background, how disciplines like Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and judo build confidence and resilience, and GMNSM’s expansion into Riyadh and Monaco.

As the founder of GMNSM, what have you observed about the role sport can play in shaping confidence, discipline and resilience among young girls, particularly as they grow up in the UAE?

I have seen that sports gives girls a safe environment to test themselves, make mistakes, overcome challenges, and take pride in their own progress. These experiences all have an impact far beyond the academy.

For young girls, especially, learning that they can be physically strong and have the capabilities to compete, lose, and try again can build a very practical kind of confidence. It comes from experiencing your own ability to deal with challenges, and that teaches them to become more independent.

Because the UAE is a very international landscape, children grow up surrounded by different cultures, ambitions and opportunities. Sports gives them a strong sense of identity and community while teaching qualities such as discipline, resilience, respect and teamwork.

At GMNSM, we see this as part of our broader responsibility. Our goal is not simply to develop young athletes or prepare children for competitions – we want to give them tools that they can carry into school, future careers and relationships.

I think this is especially important for girls: they should grow up knowing that strength can take many forms – physical, emotional and intellectual – and that they have the skills to develop all three.

The UAE has created an environment where women and girls are increasingly encouraged to participate in sport and pursue leadership opportunities. From your experience at GMNSM, how do you see this changing the way the next generation approaches confidence and ambition?
I think we are seeing a generation of girls growing up with a much broader sense of what is possible for them. At GMNSM, we see this in the way young girls approach sport – they are more comfortable competing, taking on challenges and setting ambitious goals for themselves.

Sport plays an important role because it gives confidence a practical foundation. When a girl learns to push through difficulty, compete, lose, improve and try again, she develops resilience that can translate into other areas of her life.

The UAE’s growing emphasis on women’s participation and leadership reinforces this mindset. Our role at GMNSM is to give girls the environment and tools to develop that confidence from an early age. They need to view ambition as something they can pursue with discipline and purpose instead of something they need to limit.

You came from a professional sporting background before becoming an entrepreneur. How has your experience as an athlete shaped the way you think about empowering young girls through sport?

My experience as an athlete taught me that sport is not only about performance or winning. It teaches you how to set goals, deal with setbacks, stay disciplined and keep going when progress is not immediate.

That experience strongly shaped how I think about working with young girls. I also see it very personally as a father. My 5 years old daughter is growing up here in the UAE, and I made sure sports were part of her life from the early age of two years old. Watching her develop through sport gives me a very different perspective. I see first-hand how physical activity can build confidence, independence and resilience.

What are some of the qualities you see developing in girls through disciplines such as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and judo that extend beyond the training space and into school, relationships and eventually their professional lives?

One of the most important things I see is resilience. In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and judo, you are constantly put in situations where things don’t go according to plan. You learn to stay calm, think, adapt and try again. That mindset is incredibly valuable outside the training space.

Girls also develop a strong sense of self-confidence, but in a very grounded way. They learn what they are physically capable of, how to set boundaries, work with others and respect both themselves and their opponents.

Over time, these qualities naturally translate into other areas of life, whether it is approaching a difficult task at school, navigating relationships or, later, taking on challenges and responsibility in their professional lives.

I also want to mention that girls at GMNSM receive their own journals, where they set goals and track their progress. Our program also draws on the journeys of successful women as examples, and we explore episodes of girls’ films – Mulan, for instance – together with the kids as part of our emotional intelligence classes.

As GMNSM expands from its Dubai roots into markets such as Riyadh and Monaco, what role do you see the UAE continuing to play in shaping conversations around women, girls and sport on a broader international stage?

The UAE’s multicultural fabric makes it the ideal place to champion girls’ and women’s sport. Children here grow up surrounded by different cultures, which makes giving girls the confidence and skills to participate, compete and lead even more important – and the UAE pushes that.

At GMNSM, we see sport as a powerful tool for building this confidence. It teaches girls discipline, resilience, teamwork and leadership – qualities that carry into every part of their lives. That’s part of why we saw Dubai, with its diverse communities, as the natural home for GMNSM.

As part of our program, this journal also uses a system built around six key qualities that we help children develop. Regardless of age, we always aim for the 6 Developmental Powers as part of our programs: Resilience, Leadership & Responsibility, Social Intelligence, Thinking, Confidence, and Self-mastery.

As we expand from our Dubai roots into markets such as Riyadh and Monaco, the UAE will remain an important part of our identity. I believe its experience can contribute to a broader international conversation about how sport can support the development and empowerment of the next generation. It’s exciting to see this shift playing out across the region too – Monaco has long championed women’s participation in public life, and Saudi Arabia is moving in a similar direction, from women now driving to holding senior political positions. It all points the same way: girl power.