The only skater from the UAE, Zahra Lari, will perform on March 8 and 9 at the 2019 Winter Universiade in Krasnoyarsk.
Dubai, UAE. The first and only hijab skater in the world, Zahra Lari, represents the United Arab Emirates at the 2019 Winter Universiade, which started on March 2 in Krasnoyarsk. The athlete's performances are scheduled for March 8 and 9.
Zahra Lari is also the first athlete from the UAE to participate in the Winter Universiade. It is worth noting that she is a 4-time UAE champion in her sport and hopes to qualify for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing this year.
Zahra was born in Abu Dhabi in 1995. Her parents, a citizen of the UAE and an American, met while studying at the University of Atlanta, and after marriage they moved to live in the homeland of their spouse. At age 12, Zahra saw the Disney movie "Ice Princess" about a teenage girl who made the choice between studying at the university and figure skating in favor of sports. Since then, all her thoughts have been occupied with figure skating. Larry's debut at the international level took place at the Junior European Cup in Italy in the season 2011/12.
Her coach, Alexandra Ievleva, is a former Russian figure skater who performed in singles. After completing her sports career, she graduated from the directing department of GITIS with a degree in ballet master. At one time, she trained in Turkey, and then began working with skaters in the UAE.
In 2019, the Universiade is attended by more than three thousand athletes from 58 countries. Among the strongest skaters are Elizaveta Tuktamysheva, May Mihara and Elizaveta Tursynbaeva.
