Sparta Chicks Radio: Mindset | Confidence | Sport | Women

Neanne Alnafta doesn’t like labels. But it is hard to introduce someone without them. So for this moment, I will share that she is a proud Muslim woman, a PhD candidate at the University of Sydney, an ocean swimmer and a volunteer surf lifesaver.She is also someone who is (and I quote) “freakishly scared” of the ocean.I came across Neanne’s story after reading an article about an organisation called ‘Swim Sisters’, an all-female swimming squad that empowers women, especially those from Islamic backgrounds, to feel more confident and comfortable in the ocean.You may know Swim Sisters by its former name - Burkini Babes, a group launched in France in 2016 by a group of women who were banned from wearing burkinis on the beach.In this conversation, Neanne and I discuss:- her love of soccer growing up,- why she felt like swimming and beach life weren’t for her after she started wearing the hijab, - the power and importance of representation,- what prompted her to become involved in ocean swimming and then surf life