Acting

Nawal El Moutawakel

Nawal El Moutawakel (born on April 15, 1962) is a Moroccan former hurdler, who won the inaugural women's 400 metres hurdles event at the 1984 Summer Olympics, and was the first Moroccan to become an Olympic medalist (gold). In 2007, El Moutawakel was named the Minister of Sports in the upcoming cabinet of Morocco. El Moutawakel was born in Casablanca, and was studying at Iowa State University when she won her Olympic title, which came as a surprise in her home country. King Hassan II of Morocco telephoned her to give his congratulations, and he declared that all girls born the day of her victory were to be named in her honor. Her medal also meant the breakthrough for sporting women in Morocco and other mostly Muslim countries. She was a pioneer for Muslim and Arabic athletes in that she confounded long-held beliefs that women of such backgrounds could not succeed in athletics.