Samia

Samia Yusuf Omar is only nine when she discovers what she can do: she runs faster than all the other boys and girls. With Ali, a friend of her own age, she sets out to earn real money by running and to become known. The two make a pact: Ali will be her coach, and with his help Samia is to become a real champion. But the ongoing civil war makes life in Mogadishu steadily harder. The film gives running not as a sport but as the one space the girl keeps for herself. The account does not make the war a background; it shows where and how training can be done at all. Ilham Mohamed Osman plays the lead in Yasemin Samdereli’s ninety six minute film, completed in 2024.