Rubab Raza

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Rubab Raza (Urdu: رُباب رضا), born January 15, 1991 in Lahore, Pakistan, is a swimmer who holds national records for Pakistan. In 2004, at age 13, she became the country’s first female Olympic swimmer when she competed in the 50m freestyle at the Athens Games. She did not advance past the heats, but she was the youngest Pakistani woman to compete in the Olympics and the third Pakistani woman to participate, after Shabana Akhtar (1996) and Shazia Hidayat (2000); Sumaira Zahoor followed soon after in 2004.

Her training received only about $30 a month from the Pakistan Swimming Federation, though she had support from her father, a retired army major, and her mother, a doctor. Raza has won national titles and performed well at Asian competitions, including a gold medal in the 50m freestyle at the Islamic Women's Solidarity Games in Tehran in 2005. She has also represented Pakistan in various events, including backstroke and relay races in Islamabad and Colombo.