Official Nickelodeon Middle East press release:
"Extraordinary Me" lands in the Middle East
The Nickelodeon Multiplatform Campaign is designed to empower and shed a light on local kids with astonishing talent, inspiring young viewers to build something beautiful with their passions
Lamia, the youngest athlete in the history of the UAE and DJ Michelle, the youngest professional female DJ and turntablist in the world, tell their unique stories!
United Arab Emirates: Nickelodeon presents its “
Extraordinary Me” campaign in the UAE, a live-action interstitial series highlighting kids who are inspired by what they love doing and what they do extraordinarily successfully. 9-year-old Lamia, an Emirati Rhythmic Gymnast and DJ Michelle, a professional female DJ are included as the two talents coming from the UAE with an inspiring life story. The pieces will go live from Friday, November 27th, 2020 on Nickelodeon, exclusively available on OSN across the Middle East. The series will also be available on the Nickelodeon website (
http://en.nickelodeonarabia.com/), and on Nickelodeon Arabia's
YouTube channel. Shortly, the clips will be also available on
me.nickelodeon.tv
With the objective to support and promote young talents, the Nickelodeon international campaign sheds a light on kids’ extraordinary passions as well as their determination in pursuing their goals. The series will kick start with a two-minute video from the local talents, introducing themselves while addressing the audience and inviting them for a “behind the scene” tour of the shoot and set.
The campaign will feature eight children from all over the world, each with their unique story which be told by the voice of the protagonists, the kids, in their own language. Including two UAE-based talents with inspiring life stories, the video´s voice over will inspire non-English speaking children to feel authentic to a local audience.
Lamia (@lamia_lilwonderofuae)
9-year-old, she is the only Emirati Rhythmic Gymnast and the youngest athlete in the history of the UAE. She started rhythmic gymnastics training at the age of 5 and won her first medal 6 months later at the 1st international junior championship in Dubai. Lamia has participated in 6 international camps & master classes with Olympic champions in rhythmic gymnastics. She won the “Achievement of the year” award at the Dubai Youth Olympics School in 2018.
DJ Michelle (@iamdjmichelle)
She is the youngest professional female DJ and turntablist in the world. Michelle grew up watching her father’s spinning skills and listening to good music and as a result, developed an innate devotion to music which stemmed during her toddler years and developed to become a true profession. She is the youngest Brand Ambassador for Numark and Mackie – professional DJ and sound equipment brands. Recently she also started to produce beats and now she is working on her first single as well as her first book, and both of which are going to be motivational and inspiring.
Through the campaign, Nickelodeon is providing a platform to extremely gifted children who wish to inspire their young viewers and lead them to build something beautiful with their passions. Whether it’s playing an instrument, excelling at a sport, helping the environment, or inventing the next big thing, this series will focus on everyday kids doing extraordinary things.
“EXTRAORDINARY ME” PREMIERE
Friday, November 27th, 2020 only on Nickelodeon, exclusively available on OSN
About Nickelodeon International
Nickelodeon, now in its 41st year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The brand includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, digital, location-based experiences, publishing and feature films. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of ViacomCBS Inc. (Nasdaq: VIACA, VIAC). Nickelodeon is exclusively available on OSN across the Middle East.
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Below is the Arabic version of the above press release:
نيكلوديون تطلق حملة Extraordinary Me الملهمة في الشرق الأوسط
الحملة متعددة المنصات مصممة لتسليط الضوء على أصحاب المواهب المحلية المتميزة وتمكينهم وتحفيز المشاهدين الصغار على متابعة شغفهم
السلسلة تشهد مشاركة لمياء، أصغر رياضية في تاريخ الإمارات ودي جي ميشيل، أصغر منسقة أغاني وموسيقى محترفة في العالم
الإمارات العربية المتحدة؛ 25 نوفمبر 2020: أعلنت نيكلوديون عن إطلاق حملة Extraordinary Me، السلسلة التفاعلية الحية والمميزة والتي تسلط الضوء على الأطفال الموهوبين ممن يمتلكون الشغف والعزيمة الكافية لتحقيق أهدافهم، في الإمارات العربية المتحدة. وتشارك كلٌّ من لمياء، الطفلة الإماراتية ولاعبة الجمباز الإيقاعي بعمر 9 سنوات ودي جي ميشيل، وهي منسقة أغاني محترفة كموهبتين من الإمارات ترويان قصص حياتهما الملهمة. وستبث قناة نيكلوديون السلسلة ابتداءً من يوم الجمعة 27 نوفمبر الحالي، وهي متوفرة حصرياً على شبكة OSN في جميع أنحاء الشرق الأوسط. كما ستتوفر السلسلة على موقع نيكلوديون الإلكتروني وعلى قناة نيكلوديون العربية على يوتيوب. وقريباً، على me.nickelodeon.tv أيضاً.
وتأتي حملة نيكلوديون العالمية بهدف دعم المواهب الشابة، وتسليط الضوء على شغف الأطفال الاستثنائي وتصميمهم على تحقيق أهدافهم. وتبدأ السلسلة بمقطع فيديو من دقيقتين تعرّف فيه المواهب المحلية عن نفسها أثناء مخاطبة الجمهور ودعوتهم للقيام بجولة خلف كواليس موقع وجلسة التصوير.
ويشارك في السلسلة ثمانية أطفال من جميع أنحاء العالم يروي لنا كل طفل منهم قصته الفريدة بصوته ولغته الخاصة. وتسهم مشاركة الطفلتين المقيمتين في الإمارات العربية المتحدة وقصصهما المُلهِمة مع ترجمتها في استقطاب اهتمام الأطفال غير الناطقين باللغة الإنكليزية.
لمياء (@lamia_lilwonderofuae)
تعدّ لمياء ذات التسع سنوات لاعبة الجمباز الإيقاعي الإماراتية الوحيدة، وأصغر رياضية في تاريخ الإمارات. بدأت لمياء التدريب على الجمباز بعمر الخمس سنوات، ونالت أول ميدالية بعد ستة أشهر فقط في أول نسخة من بطولة دبي الدولية للناشئين في الجمباز الإيقاعي. شاركت الطفلة الرياضية في ستة دروس رئيسية ومخيمات دولية مع أبطال أولمبيين في الجمباز الإيقاعي، وفازت بجائزة "إنجاز العام"التي تقدمها مدرسة شباب دبي الدولية للجمباز الإيقاعي في عام 2018.
دي جي ميشيل (@iamdjmichelle)
دي جي ميشيل هي أصغر منسقة أغاني وموسيقى في العالم. نشأت الطفلة الموهوبة وهي تتابع والدها أثناء تدريباته على تنسيق الأغاني وسماع الموسيقى، وهذا ما عزّز فيها الشغف بالموسيقى ليتطور فيما بعد إلى مهنة حقيقية. وتعدّ أصغر سفيرة لعلامتي نومارك وماكي للتجهيزات الصوتية ومعدات تنسيق الموسيقى الاحترافية. ومؤخراً، بدأت دي جي ميشيل بإنتاج المقطوعات الموسيقية، وتعمل حالياً على إصدار أول أغنية منفردة وأول كتاب، وسيشكلان بالتأكيد مصدر إلهامٍ للآخرين.
تقدم حملة نيكلوديون منصةً للأطفال الموهوبين ممن يشكلون مصدر إلهام للمشاهدين الصغار على متابعة شغفهم. وستركز الحملة على الأطفال ممن يمتلكون شغفاً استثنائياً سواءً في العزف على آلة موسيقية، أو التفوق في الرياضة، أو مساعدة الطبيعة، أو حتى ابتكار شيء ما.
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UAE champion gymnast Lamia Tariq Farsi thrilled with mission to inspire
UAE’s top rhythmic gymnast awarded with Nickelodeon’s ‘Extraordinary Me’ accolade
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| Lamia Tariq Farsi, the UAE’s pride as the youngest rhythmic gymnastic champion. Image Credit: Supplied |
Dubai: Lamia Tariq Farsi, the UAE’s pride as the youngest rhythmic gymnastic champion, is keen to inspire the next generation of youngsters after being chosen for Nickelodeon’s ‘Extraordinary Me’ campaign in the UAE.
At just nine years, Lamia has shone in the world of rhythmic gymnastics with international medals in France, Uzbekistan and Germany, to mention a few.
Nickelodeon’s latest ‘Extraordinary Me’ campaign fronted by the popular television channel for kids sees Lamia and DJ Michelle — the youngest professional female DJ — tell their unique stories while inspiring young viewers to build something beautiful with their passions.
“It’s a matter of pride and immense pleasure for me to be chosen for such a campaign. Not only do I want to show my sport of rhythmic gymnastics to the world, but I want to motivate everyone, especially young children to take up to some sort of sporting activity,” Lamia told Gulf News.
“I am equally proud to be an Emirati practicing this sport while breaking a lot of barriers. I want to inspire children to be healthy especially during these COVID times by eating better and staying healthy by taking up some sort of sporting activity. From my own experience, it is very important for kids to be sporty from a young age.”
Nickelodeon’s international campaign sheds light on kids’ extraordinary passions as well as their determination in pursuing their goals. The campaign will feature eight children from across the world, as each relates his or her own unique story in their own language.
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| Lamia Tariq Farsi. Image Credit: Supplied |
The series will kick-start with a two-minute video from the local talents, while introducing themselves and inviting the audience for a behind the scene tour of the shoot.
A product at the Dubai Youth Olympic School of Rhythmic Gymnastics, Lamia started gymnastics when she was just five years old under the tutelage of former Olympic champion Ksenia Dzhalaganiya.
Her first gold medal came as a six-year-old at the inaugural Dubai International Junior Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships held at the Al Habtoor Indoor Complex in 2017. After that, Lamia inspired the country with gold medals at the Open GR Azur International in Nice, France and the Emirates Rhythmic Gymnastics Cup and the 2018 Armonia Cup in Thessaloniki.
She also took silver at the 2017 Winter Cup in Leverkusen and a bronze at the prestigious Novogorsk Winter Cup in Moscow at the end of 2018.
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| Lamia Tariq Farsi. Image Credit: Supplied |
Last year, the Emirati athlete became the youngest winner so far of the prestigious Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Award for Creative Sports hosted and organised by the Dubai Sports Council. She celebrated this achievement with another gold medal, this time at the International Rhythmic Gymnastics Youth Cup in Tashkent.
Despite all these accolades, Lamia has stayed true to herself with her sights firmly on representing the UAE at the 2026 Youth Olympic Games. “The medals and awards are just a means to my ultimate goal. These are meant to motivate me to be better and to finally bring glory and honour to my country at the 2026 Youth Olympic Games,” she said. “I hope that one day the UAE will have an association for a new sport like rhythmic gymnastics so that I have the opportunity to represent my country and fly my flag high.”
The pieces will go live from Friday on the Nickelodeon channel that is exclusively available on OSN across the Middle East region. The series will also be available on the Nickelodeon website and on Nickelodeon Arabia’s YouTube channel.
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VIDEO: Emirati gymnast Lamia stars in Nickelodeon’s 'Extraordinary Me' campaign
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| Lamia Tariq Malallah harbours hopes of taking part in the Youth Olympic Games 2026. |
Lamia Tariq Malallah harbours hopes of taking part in the Youth Olympic Games 2026.
Getting noticed for her extraordinary talent, the UAE’s little wonder and well- known rhythmic gymnast, Lamia Tariq Malallah, was launched in a global campaign called "Extraordinary Me," produced by Nickelodeon Kids channel.
Nickelodeon started the ‘Extraordinary Me’ campaign to recognise youth talents globally while giving them a platform to showcase their skills and show how they lead their daily lives. The objective behind the channel’s campaign is to inspire and motivate more children to pursue their dreams and talents.
The short film focuses on Lamia’s everyday life along with her daily training sessions at her training centre, Dubai Youth Olympic School, her hobbies and family life. The short film released on Friday can be viewed on Nickelodeon HD channel that is exclusively available on OSN across the Middle East region. The series will also be available on the Nickelodeon website and on Nickelodeon Arabia's YouTube channel.
“I am thrilled to be a part of the ‘Extraordinary Me’ campaign for Nickelodeon as it gives me the ability to reach out to a worldwide audience of children who may be inspired by my story and follow their dreams.
“This short film is about my daily life, my dedication, my hard work, and my wanting to reach the goal of being the first UAE National to compete in gymnastics in the Youth Olympics in 2026, and even if one child is motivated by watching my story then I know that I have made a difference to the world,” Lamia added. The Emirati gymnast harbours hopes of taking part in Youth Olympic Games 2026, which was due to be held in Senegal in 2022 and has been postponed for four years.
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| Lamia Tariq Malallah competes during a game. File |
Lamia, whose first gold medal came at the age of six when she won the inaugural Dubai International Junior Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in 2017, says she is focused fully on her goal to win gold at the Youth Olympic Games.
This campaign will further embellish Lamia’s standing worldwide as an athlete from the UAE to reckon with, as people are not much familiar with female athletes from the Arab world.
Even the spread of the coronavirus pandemic failed to dampen her spirits and even when the UAE was under complete lockdown for more than three months, she continued training at her home majlis. “This year has not been easy for most people all over the world, and even more so for kids as their lives have changed drastically, but if you have a strong goal in your life like mine is to compete in the Youth Olympics, it will give you a purpose to be stronger and work harder at what you want to be,” she said.
Despite the difficult times, Lamia continued training through online guidance from accomplished 2002 World Champion Ksenia Dzhalaganiya of Dubai Youth Olympic School of Rhythmic Gymnastics.
At an age of five where children are mostly attracted towards electronic games and gadgets, Lamia decided to take up rhythmic gymnastics. Her father, Tariq Ali Abdullah Malallah, and mother, Malak Tariq Alfarsi, stood like a solid rock in support of their kid’s decision. They helped her throughout to pursue the sport. Lamia has not disappointed them and has already won six international gold medals, besides dominating local championships.
She has worked tirelessly all these years without the normalcy of a childhood as her training hall is all that she sees every day after the school.
The youngest recipient of the coveted Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Creative Sports Award which she won in 2019, Lamia also bagged top honours at the International Rhythmic Gymnastics Youth Cup held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, last year.
The nine-year-old is considered as a sports ambassador for the youth in UAE as she pursues gymnastics professionally by competing on international platforms and attending training camps worldwide during her school breaks.
Lamia, who is a student of the International School of Choueifat in Dubai, also promotes healthy lifestyle and nutritional eating habits on her social media accounts. She also dreams of a future where more Emirati girls join the sport and has already chosen a coaching profession to pursue to train and teach more children to be fit.
Lamia has also won gold medals at the 2017 Open GR Azur International in Nice, France, and at the 2018 Armonia Cup.
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Originally published: Thursday, November 26, 2020 at 00:13 GMT.
