Between oil fields and target lines, Kuwait’s Noor finds focus in archery

By profession, Noor Alsharhan works in an environment defined by pressure, precision and constant deadlines.

A Kuwaiti petroleum engineer, her days are spent navigating numbers, projects and decisions that rarely slow down. Away from work, however, she steps into a very different space. With a bow in hand, Alsharhan finds calm and focus, a contrast to the pace of her professional life.

That contrast has drawn her to archery, a sport she describes as both demanding and grounding. Alsharhan competed at the eighth edition of the Arab Women Sports Tournament in Sharjah, marking her second appearance at the competition. This time, she says, the experience feels markedly different.

Her first participation was largely about discovery. Competing at the tournament level exposed her to the intensity and pressure of high-level competition. She finished outside the leading positions and did not reach the podium. Today, she views that result as a necessary step, one that helped her understand the demands of the sport and build confidence.

What she values most about the tournament is the atmosphere surrounding it. Competing alongside familiar faces, including friends and fellow archers, creates what she describes as a healthy and supportive environment. That sense of shared experience, she believes, gives competition meaning beyond rankings and results.

Although she previously practised sports such as swimming and taekwondo, archery has become the discipline that suits her best. She considers it accessible for beginners and encourages others to try it without hesitation. For her, the main challenge lies in commitment rather than difficulty.

Balancing a full-time engineering career with regular training requires discipline. Despite professional responsibilities, she maintains consistent practice hours, convinced that continuity is the key to improvement. Progress, she believes, comes through patience and repetition.

Alsharhan does not frame her sporting journey as a pursuit of rapid success. Instead, she approaches archery as an ongoing process, where each competition adds experience and perspective. It is a quiet journey shaped by persistence, balance and the decision to return, stronger and more assured each time.

The Arab Women Sports Tournament 2026 brings together athletes from 16 Arab countries competing across nine sports and runs until 12 February in Sharjah.