MARTIAL ARTIST, AMBASSADOR AND BATONBEARER, HARLEEN KAUR READY FOR THE B2022

• Ambassador for Sporting Equals and Asian Sports Foundation
• Won NatWest Asian Women of Achievement Awards as Sportswoman of the year – youngest ever recipient of the award.
• Spent every summer volunteering for sports charity in India since 2016 – she goes every year. Visits Punjab in North India and spends a few months there. She works with children, teaches life skills, teaches English and holds self-defence workshops.

From Bradford, Harleen Kaur is a martial artist and kickboxing champion. She is a fantastic representative in sport for her country and women in the South Asian community.

As a young girl, Harleen’s passion for sport shone brightly and she went on to successfully compete in kickboxing and also coach at a high level, helping those who have faced barriers in accessing sport.

As a competitor, Harleen won British kickboxing gold in 2015, followed by silver in the World Martial Kombat Championships. She was the first British Asian female to represent England kickboxing in the world championships.

Harleen is also a keen volunteer, dedicating every summer to visits to Punjab in North India, supporting a sports charity, teaching life skills, English and self-defence. Driven by her passion to give back to communities, she also works as an ambassador for Sporting Equals and the Asian Sports Foundation who promote diversity within sport.

During the Covid-19 lockdown she noticed the potential of the communities of Asian women in Bradford. With this in mind, she founded Club Ekta, a sports club to empower and improve social, physical and mental wellbeing of women and children through sport. The club runs eight classes a week and within its first six months, gained 150 members. Club Ekta provides an opportunity for young people the chance to develop their skillsets through coaching.

In 2020, Harleen graduated from Leeds Beckett University with a degree in Sports Science. She is a fantastic role model for south Asian women and young women in sport. Her hard work and enthusiasm has been recognised far and wide and is the youngest ever recipient of NatWest’s Asian Women of Achievement Awards as Sportswoman of the year.

Harleen is a Batonbearer in recognition of her work within sports that brings South Asian women and women from other backgrounds to the forefront of sporting activity and athletics.

 

Source: B2022