As International Women's Day approaches (8th March), she tells us about her career change and the values that guided her and allowed her to stay in the world of sport even if she is following a new path.
"I can see it every day, often women are sedentary. It is often life that dictates it. Unfortunately sport is not part of their daily life, while it can bring so much. It is something noble that is not only useful, but also necessary.
I believe that we women need to feel responsible. Since the dawn of time, we have been carrying life and this is not insignificant. We need to be useful to society. For young girls and women to stay in sport or join it, they must feel this need for usefulness. I recently did a trail run in the Moroccan Sahara (Sahraouiya raid). I was associated with a woman, Amélia, who was precisely a sedentary person, but who got in on the act because by participating in this trail run, she could contribute to an association. It made all the difference. While she did not do any other sport, she did more than 100km of running with me in the desert.
We must highlight the responsibility of each person. This is one of the solutions to promote sport, especially among women. When you feel useful in some way, you can do much more. It is often a very effective way to attract women to practise sport. If they can also feel confident, then we have won everything.
It contributes to everyone's mental health. I believe that physical effort is a catalyst. It is something that I have often used in my life. Today, I no longer need to say that I want to be the best in the world, but I need to feel useful to society.
Basically, I love sport. It has always been part of my life. Sport is magical but having a 'because' helps me enormously. It allows me to stay in the world of sport, to continue training even if I no longer have a goal of results, 'because' I feel useful.
I am proud of my sporting career. I went to Tokyo in 2021, I pushed a few more years until 2024 and I stopped the high level career at 41. Since then I have continued to flourish. For Paris 2024, I supported athletes in their mental preparation. It is an area that is very dear to me. I am a therapist, mental trainer, speaker and I also created my association which focuses on mental health. My decisions and choices are carefully considered.
I was talking about usefulness. For example, everything I continue to do through sport, I do for my association. I want to be able to support people's mental health, without discrimination and without borders, to make mental health accessible to all, especially for athletes who don't have all the means of the big countries.
It's quite funny, because when I think back, I have always worked. I was a Paris firefighter for ten years and at one point, I put my professional life on hold to devote myself to my sporting career. I must say that I started late, since it was only at the age of 29 that I began to perform. So I took a break to compete and today I have resumed my professional life. I am completely fulfilled. So, the end of my sporting career was not sad. I now want to share it.
Judo has changed my life, it taught me resilience. I learned what it is to fall and get back up. When I am standing, I know why. I will forever remain a judoka. It was my best university and the experience of high level sport has been rich in my learning. In every situation that I encounter now, I can make a link with judo. It's my magic wand."
Assmaa Niang's life journey commands respect, her ability to overcome all obstacles, both physical and mental, is incredible. She owes much of this to sport and judo in particular, and this is the message she strives to communicate to everyone.