Background
Attar was born in Escondido, California in 1992. Her mother, Judy, is an American national hailing from California and her father is a Saudi Arabian national.
Attar was born in Escondido, California in 1992. Her mother, Judy, is an American national hailing from California and her father is a Saudi Arabian national.
She graduated from Escondido High School in 2010, having competed for the school in cross country running.
She has Saudi Arabian and American dual nationality and is currently a student at Pepperdine University in Los Angeles County, California. Attar was named one of the first two women to compete for Saudi Arabia in their Olympic team at the 2012 Summer Olympics. The other woman representing Saudi Arabia is judoka Wojdan Shaherkani.
Prior to June 2012, the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee had banned female athletes from competing at the Olympics, but the International Olympic Committee had threatened to ban Saudi Arabia from the Games unless they allowed women to compete.
She was expected to wear outfits that comply with Islamic law. Attar is sponsored by Oiselle, a running apparel company focused on promoting and supporting female athletes, as of April 16, 2015, when she announced the news via a post on the company"s blog.
Oiselle also announced the news on its Twitter accountant 2012 Olympic Games
Attar was one of two athletes from her University to be selected to compete at the Olympics, along with Roxanne Barker, who is on the South African team
During the Opening Ceremonies" Parade of Nations, Attar and Shaherkani, the only two females in the Saudi Arabian delegation, were forced to walk behind their male teammates, unlike delegations from other Islamic nations.
Attar competed in the women"s 800 metres and took up the automatic qualification spot for a track and field athlete. Her personal best at that distance is 2:40, having competed at this distance during high school but not since she has attended college. Attar competed in Heat 6 of the women"s 800m qualifying heats on August 8, 2012, where she finished last, with a time of 2:44.95.
Despite finishing more than half a minute slower than her nearest competitor, hundreds of spectators stood and applauded Attar as she crossed the finish line.
Olympic television coverage of her finish.
