Asiya Mohammed ready for Paralympics action

Kenya's first female rower to qualify for the Paralympic Games, Asiya Mohammed us excited to get into the water and challenge for a medal at the Games officially opened on Tuesday 24 August 2021 at the Japanese capital, Tokyo. 

The 29-year old who found herself in the current predicament of living with disabilities following a train accident in Mombasa says being a newbie in the sport is not hindering her from dreaming up a podium finish. 

"It has been a long journey getting here and the preparations have also been intense. I was in Portugal from May to July then returned home, Mombasa, for two weeks before having a mother two weeks of training in Ruiru ahead of our travel to Tokyo. In Portugal my training focused alot on getting the right techniques for the competition and the technical aspect of the sport," explained the tennis player turned rower. 

The double amputee who has had a go at wheelchair tennis, badminton and marathons in her quest to shed weight that was becoming problematic for her settled for rowing and is reaping the fruits of hard work. 

"The technique, especially boat alignment has been a problem for me and my stay in Portugal helped with that. My left side is weaker that the right hence the problems with alignment and balance. I came back home and the main focus was power training. My diet plays a big role I this. When home I can eat our indigenous foods that give us the much needed power. In Japan, it has been fine tuning on my movement in water and I am ready," said the trained teacher. 

Mohammed has benefited from a new boat, a 24kg machine that she says will see her move faster in water as opposed to her training boat that was 11kgs heavier. 

"We rigged the boat on the first day of training and had a feel of it and I love it. I am lighter and so is the boat and if the waves favour us that gives me a huge advantage. The water in Tokyo is Saline and that comes with its advantages and disadvantages. If we go on against the wind, it is a huge problem because that takes alot of effort to have the boat move. You have to row and break the waves," she explained. 

Carrying the underdog tag into the competition, Mohammed says she is looking to qualify to the A team final which includes six of the best rowers from the qualification heats and where the medalists are drawn from. 

Mohammed first qualified to compete in her first ever international event during the season-opening para-rowing Gavirate Regatta in Italy in May 2019. 

Although she finished second last she kept going and eventually pushed her ticket to the Summer Games at the African pre-Paralympic championships in Tunis in October 2019. She beat seven other contenders to win the PR1 women’s singles sculls, for competitors using their arms only.