Sheikha Maitha bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum  is the daughter of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who is the ruler of Dubai.

This weekend, she rose to the occasion on her Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship debut, winning silver as the UAE secured 12 medals on the penultimate day yesterday.

The daughter of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, put on a great display but came short against Libya’s Odette Malkoun in the white belt +75kg final at Abu Dhabi’s IPIC Arena.
In the first round, Sheikha Maitha defeated Brazil’s Ana Paula Tofolorio and beat UAE’s Shefaa Moosa Hasan in the semifinals.

Sheikha Maitha is a karate and taekwondo black belt and a former Olympian for the United Arab Emirates. She won the silver medal at the Women’s Over 60 Kilogram in the 2006 Asian games karate event. In March 2008, the UAE National Olympic Committee announced Sheikha Maitha’s participation at the 2008 Summer Olympics. She participated in taekwondo in the 67 kg category for women.

For UAE MMA/BJJ Journalist Mohammed Al Hosani, Sheikha Maitha is a great example for UAE women BJJ players:

“Leadership by Example”. Her Highness Sheikha Maitha bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum participating in her first Jiu-Jitsu event, which came as a surprise to many people who never knew she started training in Jiu-Jitsu. Her participation is important not in terms of what medal she received, but in the effect it will have on the UAE female population and their acceptance of the martial art/sport.

 

Sheikha Maitha is part of a long list of UAE royalty that train Jiu-Jitsu. Some of the most famous ones are BJJ black belts Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nahyan (founder of the ADCC) and Sheikh Tariq Bin Faisal bin Khalid Al Qassimi of Sharjah.