London 2012 is the first year that all teams have a female competitor.
With tears in her eyes, "Yes," she said, "this is my dream come true."
It wasn't because she won a metal that made Bahya Mansour Al Hamad turn emotional.
The 20-year-old had just finished the 10-meter air rifle, an event not many people care or even know about. Her 17th-place finish left her well out of the medals, but three letters on her athlete's bib said it all. "QAT" stands for Qatar, a country that had never before allowed women on its Olympic team. Al Hamad is a pioneer, simply by her presence in London.
When asked whether she ever expected to take part in the Games, she could only shake her head.
As recently as 16 years ago, 26 national teams would have no female Olympic athletes. This summer marks the first time every team has at least one woman on the roster.
The last three holdouts - the Qataris, Saudi Arabia and Brunei – finally agreed to lift their ban on women athletes after considerable pressure and negotiations from the IOC.
Although Saudi Arabia, noticeably had its women marching at the rear of the delegation.
Qatar chose Al Hamad to carry their flag in the opening ceremony.
An important precedent and a step forward...
Congratulations for her courage...
