Aleena proudly says that she feels exclusive because she is among the first Indian female to do Supercross.
Pune: In a cricket-crazy country like India, a sport like racing never gets the limelight and if you are a woman – it is nearly impossible to get any attention. But, Aleena Mansur is certainly changing the norms. The 13-year-old Supercross racer is certainly here on a mission. With her burning passion for racing, Aleena speaks about the obstacles she faces in India being a female racer, that too a Muslim. During an exclusive interaction with India.com ahead of her Indian Supercross Racing League (ISRL) debut, Aleena speaks of the obstacles she has to face on a regular basis.
“Being a Muslim, you are expected to dress up in a certain way. My relatives expect me to wear a Burka and do household chores and that annoys me,” said Aleena with her eyes glistening with dreams.
Then she proudly says that she feels exclusive because she is among the first Indian female to do Supercross and also explains why she loves the sport.
“I love to fly and on these bikes, I fly and that excites me about the sport. I am also one of the first females to be doing something like this and I take a lot of pride on that,” she said on the sidelines of ISRL in Pune.
She also went on to explain the financial problems she faces because it is a costly sport. A humble and articulate Aleena admitted that her father had to sell off an house to support her passion.
“My father has been very supportive throughout my journey. He was the one who went against all our relatives to help me continue my passion. It is an expensive sport and my father had to also sell off an house to support my finances. Now, we do not even have anything that could be sold,” Aleena said.
“Injuries is part of the sport. I have already had five fractures, but my father has been supportive and hence I have managed to continue on,” she added.
She also hoped that things will change for her – in terms of finance and popularity – after the Indian Supercross Racing League where she is part of the SG Speed Racers team.