Obviously, football is a big part of your life as well. How have you balanced medical training with your work as an athlete on a global stage?
It hasn’t been easy. I did my bachelor’s degree as normal as everyone else because it was possible for me to be in school from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. My football training was at 6 p.m. It was possible but also really tough.
We have these huge exams in Denmark where you are literally tested on six, seven, or eight big subjects. The failure rate is really high. I was selected for the Danish national team. The time for my exam was literally the same time that I was about to go to camp. I remember there was this lady ... I explained my problem, and she said: “Well, I’m sorry, this is it. You have to make a choice. No one can play football and be a doctor, so I guess you have to make a choice.” I wanted to prove her wrong.
What advice would you have for students who may be in such similar situations, in which they have a counselor or an advisor who isn’t very supportive?
I think there’s always two ways: Either you’re gonna listen and be like “okay, this is it. I give up.” Or, if you’re really passionate about it, you’re gonna go the hard way, which is that you do your thing and then slowly everything is gonna go your way.
I think it’s just about being strong enough to “do you.” I think that’s important. Don’t just give up easily just because you’ve been told: ‘We’ve never done this before. It’s impossible.’ I don’t believe that [impossible] is something that exists. I think if you want to do something, there’s always a way. You just have to find it.
I have never taken no for an answer, I guess. But it’s not gonna be easy.
Given all that is on your plate, how do you avoid burnout?
I love doing active stuff. I have a lot of hobbies. I also enjoy just chilling. If my football allows it, and I’m fresh, I love to do stuff outside like tennis, basketball, and swimming.
I love to watch Bollywood movies, just because I speak Hindi. They have something a bit magical around them, like fairy tale movies. I love to watch Korean dramas. I think I’m always interested in other cultures.
You also have a lot of other projects in the works. Could you tell us briefly about some that you’re currently working on?
One of the things that is really close to my heart and I’m passionate about is volunteer work. You know, the humanitarian organizations that do so much in the world. I’ve been on the receiving hand on the other side. I know that a little tiny help can have a huge impact on your character and your future. That’s probably also one of the reasons I want to be a doctor.
One of the organizations that I work with is the Danish Refugee Council. I have visited refugee camps around the world. I’ve been in Jordan and Kenya, and also Denmark. I’m also ambassador for [United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization] UNESCO’s education for girls. Because, again, I think education is the key to a lot of the problems we do face right now.
For instance, let’s say racism, which is a huge thing. You could probably decrease that by educating people. Ignorance, I think, is a huge factor, the fear that you see among a lot of people because of Islam. It’s just people being ignorant. They don’t know. They just assume or they see a certain group and think that they are the representation for the entire population. All of this ends with education.
If you could educate people, I think a lot of problems would disappear or at least get better. So yeah, I am really busy. But whenever I have a bit of time, I try to use it on making a change.
I started by saying that my mom said education is very important. I think that’s something that my entire family has taken to. My oldest [sister] is a doctor, and then I have two nurses in the family, my youngest sisters. I think a goal is to have a clinic all together.