'Born for speed': Alia Abdulsalam makes a splash as first UAE female powerboat driver

Emirati racer will mark her 23rd birthday with debut at Scandinavian Championship

Alia Abdulsalam, the first Emirati female powerboat driver, with her father Abdulsalam Fairooz. Victor Besa / The National

Alia Abdulsalam will make her powerboat debut during the Scandinavian Championship next month. Victor Besa / The National

Alia Abdulsalam hopes to inspire Emirati girls to pick up sports and express themselves. Victor Besa / The National

Alia Abdulsalam is getting ready for her powerboat debut. Photo: aliaabdulsalam_f4 / Instagram

Emirati women are breaking boundaries with each passing day and the latest to join the mission is Alia Abdulsalam – the first Emirati female powerboat racing driver.

Alia is set for a historic debut in the Scandinavian Championship in a G15 powerboat at the Tonsberg Lake in Norway on August 3, which will also mark her 23rd birthday.

Her journey started with a fun ride at the same lake, where Alia’s father Abdulsalam Fairooz anchors two racing boats.

Fairooz was a former Formula 4 driver for the UAE before entering the world of sports management. Employed as partnership manager at Adnoc, he was a promoter for the F2 World Championship for three years and has now ventured into football events.

Alia has followed her father since childhood and is familiar with every aspect of each sport he was involved in. She played football in high school and even tried jiu-jitsu, but when given the opportunity behind a powerboat, she took to it like duck to water.

“At the beginning, I was looking up to my father mostly. Seeing him race and his involvement in the sport so passionately encouraged me to start,” Alia told The National.

“Aside from that, I loved the sea and I liked to be challenged. So, all three combined, I got into sports. I played a lot of football and also tried jiu-jitsu, but it is powerboat racing that I fell in love with after my first try.”

Alia had her first go behind a G15 engine on one of her visits to Norway with her father in 2022.

She drove a powerboat for the first time in a non-championship race and impressed her father as well as his Norwegian team manager and former F4 world champion Frode Sundsdal.

Watching her first spin behind a GT15, Fairooz and Sundsdal saw Alia's potential.

“She impressed everyone and I had lots of positive feedback on her racing abilities, skills and talent. I asked her if she would like to pursue powerboat racing full-time and she readily agreed,” Fairooz said.

“Of course, she was quite familiar with racing boats from her childhood and has been driving them whenever we were on holidays in Norway. She’s now serious and wants to pioneer the sport as the first Emirati female powerboat racing driver.”

The UAE Marine Sports Federation has granted Alia authorisation to race under the nation’s flag when she makes her debut in the Scandinavian Championship.

“We wish Alia all the success. We strongly believe she will inspire more Emirati women to venture into powerboat racing at the international level and also in various other sports that are widely made available for Emirati girls,” a spokesperson for the federation said.

Alia is thrilled with the support provided by her family and the federation.

“I’m greatly looking forward for my first race in Norway and the opportunity to race in F4 in the local races and the Gulf Championship,” she said.

“Actually, I have been driving these boats for the last two years, mostly in Norway. There, we race in a lake. I have also driven the F4 in the UAE. Here, we race in the sea and its quite tough as the water is quite choppy because of the windy conditions.

“The Scandinavian Championship is in a lake and calmer waters, and the first time in a competition for me and I feel confident. I was never afraid. I love speed. I feel I was born for it.”

Alia is the third in the family of three girls and three boys, and the first to pursue a sporting career full-time.

“I’m proud to be representing the UAE,” she added. “My father always encouraged all of us to be involved in sports, not necessarily at professional level but to keep us active and lead a healthy lifestyle.

“I’m just fortunate to be the first Emirati female powerboat driver. I wish to encourage more girls to follow their dreams. This experience allowed me to discover a lot about me.”

Fairooz and Sundsdal watched Alia in awe after her first test drive in a racing boat.

“When we saw her first time driving the boat, everyone there told me that there is somebody with potential in that boat and I should take care of her,” said Fairooz.

“We decided to provide her a lot of practice there with the community. She was doing very well, and then I thought, no, I need to take care and need to support her to be able to be engaged full-time in powerboat racing. This was two years ago in Norway.

“My partner (Sundsdal) and I have two boats there. We have a facility and stage an annual festival. For me, it’s like my second home.

“I have raced in Tonsberg Lake. I was the promoter of the UAE President Cup and the F2 World Championship. Now I'm trying to transfer all that experience to my daughter and also try to attract more Emirati girls to be active, to be healthy, to be sporty. This is the main objective.”