The Olympic Committee awarded the honour of waving the Maldivian national flag up at the Indian Ocean Island Games (IOIG) to the national table tennis champion, Fathimath Dheema and nation tennis champion, Mohamed Faaih Fazeel.
The IOIG, which was previously set to take place in Maldives, will now be held on the September 25 in Madagascar.
Dheema waved the flag at the previous games held in Mauritius in 2019. This marks the first occasion where two athletes from each country will jointly hold their respective flags.
In 2020, the Olympic Federation made a decision stipulating that a male and a female athlete from each country would be given the opportunity to jointly carry their national flag during the opening and closing ceremonies of the Indian Ocean Island Games (IOIG).
During a ceremony held at the Social Centre, Dheema received the flag from President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. As Faaih is currently not in Malé, he was unable to participate in the event. This year marks the first time Faaih will wave the flag at the Indian Ocean Island Games (IOIG).
Dheema wave the national flag at the World Expo held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The Economic Ministry gave the opportunity to Dheema due to her achievements as a young and accomplished female athlete in the field of sports.
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