Maria Toorpakai Wazir

Maria Toorpakai was born on November 22, 1990, in Domel, Bannu, a tribal region in northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan. Her parents are teachers who are committed to women's rights despite the presence of the Taliban in the region. She credits the time her father, Shamsul Qayum Wazir, spent time with hippies visiting the area in his youth for his autodidactic education and supportive attitude toward women's education, which included education of her mother. As a child, Toorpakai loved to play outside, even though girls are not allowed to go outside the house in the highly conservative tribal area. At age 4, her parents allowed her to dress in boys' clothes and by age 7 she lived as a boy. Before fifth grade, she burnt all her dresses. Her father saw parallels to his tomboy sister, who "just collapsed one day and he thought she died basically of a broken heart, because she wasn't allowed to live the life that she wanted to live." both boys and men. ==Career==

In 2006, Toorpakai turned professional. As a female athlete who played without a veil and in shorts, her actions were perceived as "un-Islamic". It was in 2007, she recalls, two years before Malala Yousafzai was shot, that the Taliban threatened to kill her and her family. The Pakistani National Squash Federation provided security by "snipers around my house, all the way to the squash court and on the squash court". She recalls "There was a bomb blast every day. [...] terrible things [...] happening all around me." She wrote to clubs, players, and schools and received no response; for three and a half years she "locked herself in a room in [her] house." She said she kept playing squash, hitting balls against her wall, until her neighbors complained one day. "I had to switch the wall. But I kept going". and as of May 2016, she ranked 56th of female squash player in the world. In 2013, she gave a speech for Tedxteen called 'Squashing Extremism'. On May 4, 2017, she was appointed to the IOC Women in Sport commission, stating that could "play a better role from this position for athletes and girls in sports". Upon her appointment, the president of the World Squash Federation, Jaques Fontaine said "Every player has a journey, but very occasionally there is one that is very special and transcends her sport. Maria's is one of those. She is a most admirable young woman whose experiences will inspire everybody." ==Awards==

In August 2007, the President of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf, gave her the Salaam Pakistan Award, alongside tennis player Aisam Ul Haq Qureshi and footballer Muhammad Essa. In late August 2007, at almost 17, she lost a five-game semi-final in the POF Women's International Squash Players Association Wah Cantt Open at the Jahangir Khan Squash Complex in Wah Cantt, Pakistan, missing out on a maiden appearance in a WISPA World Tour final; she was nominated as "Young Player of the Year 2007". In 2009, she won third place in the World Junior Women's Squash Championship. In October 2012 she won the first annual Voice of Hope Award from Canadian First Lady Laureen Harper. ==Personal life==

In 2011 through 2017, Toorpakai resided in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and has a home in Pakistan. Since 2017, she lives in Pakistan alone "but I don't go out to party or drink, because I want to set a standard for the girls back home." Toorpakai is an advocate for women's rights in Pakistan to "overcome discrimination and cultural obstacles". She has set up a foundation encouraging families to educate girls and allow them to play sports. She has said she hopes to get academic training in music. ==Bibliography==