Hi – my name is Yousif Ibrahim Al Sulaiti.

I’m 21 years old, a former student-athlete of ASPIRE, and now I’m one of the academy’s employees.

I work in the Communications and Marketing Department as an Events Assistant, helping out with the organizing and arranging of all the official functions that take place here. Most recently, I was involved with the visit of Manchester United for their training camp. I’m now working on ASPIRE’s “Football Dreams” project.

As a student-athlete here (I graduated in 2007), I was first encouraged to concentrate on athletics. I am blessed with natural speed and I ran the fastest 100 meters in all the elimination tests.

But what I really wanted to do was ten-pin bowling! That sport is not offered here at ASPIRE, so I decided to choose a multi-sports option – basketball, handball and volleyball. I also enjoyed a summer camp I went to in Germany, where I did fencing, judo and athletics.

After graduating, my first job was with a bank in Doha, while, in my spare time, I took up skeet shooting. But now, one year after coming to work at ASPIRE, I’ve rediscovered my enthusiasm for athletics. I recently clocked a personal best in the 100 meters – a time of 11.45 seconds. And I’m determined to one day break the 11-seconds barrier.

So, if you see me running around the building, between offices, it doesn’t mean I’m late for work. I’m just putting in some extra practice for my next 100 meters!