RUQSANA BEGUM
Our Friday features are always creative people dancing with the label of dyslexia and this week we are proud to welcome Ruqsana Begum. Ruqsana is a trail blazer, she is currently the only British Female Muslim to have achieved a World Championship in Muay Thai Kick-boxing, in addition to being double bronze medallist. Through her success she has been honoured to meet Her Majesty The Queen, was one of the Olympic torch bearers and has been voted Number One in the British Power List as most inspirational person and has received a number of other accolades such as Asian Sports personality of the year and being short-listed alongside internationally recognized athletes such as Mo Farrah. In addition to the attributes of fitness and good health, Ruqsana has a graduate degree in architecture and she is an author and renowned inspirational speaker as well as being a personal trainer, sports model and sportswear designer having designed one of the first ever range of sport’s hijab prior to Nike.
Her goal now is to be the very first female to achieve World Championship titles in two disciplines both Kick-boxing and Boxing, having now advanced in professional boxing and being signed by former World Champion Mr David Haye.
‘’The world of sport and boxing has taught me about self respect and respect for others, working on my own initiative and working within the context of a team, physical strength and inner strength to overcome challenges and fears. I have been blessed to be fortunate enough to pursue my passion at a World Class level and I am grateful for the positive and life changing experiences sport has given my life. I wish to share this passion with others teaching them discipline inside and outside of the ring”
Ruqsana Begum
Here is how Ruqsana answered our signature questions:
How would you describe your relationship to dyslexia in a sentence, word, image or even a dance move?
The words I would use to describe my relationship with dyslexia are creative, flow, chaos, adventure, scattered, out of the box and speed.
How does Dyslexia influence your work and/or personal life?
Dyslexia affects my work in a positive way, it allows me to think outside the box , be creative, be a visionary & be aluminous. I do find it difficult to think in a linear fashion, spelling words and find myself jumping from one idea to another.
Is there an item that best represents, aids or embraces your dyslexia? If so, can you explain it or share an image of it?
An item could be a beautiful painting with a lot of depth to it and the more you look the more depth you see. It’s full of wisdom, life lessons and creativity, passion. But to the untrained eye it's just a beautiful painting.
What advice would you give to your future self?
The advice I'd give to my future self is we all have unique gifts that are meant to be shared with the world, never give up on your path, if there's a obstacle, find a different road.