A Sydney schoolgirl aiming to become the first hijabi ballerina in the world has been awarded a scholarship to help realise her dream.
Fairfax Media first spoke to Stephanie Kurlow, 14, last month about a crowd-sourcing initiative she had launched to fund a place in a full-time ballet school and eventually open a school for culturally diverse dancers.
Her inspiring story was picked up by news outlets across the world, including The New York Times, The Independent, USA Today and the Huffington Post.
Swedish sports brand Björn Borg, started by the former tennis player, read Fairfax's story and released a video on Sunday to announce that it would fulfil Stephanie's dream to attend ballet school.
Two representatives from the brand flew out from Sweden recently to offer Stephanie their "Game Changer Scholarship", which supports athletes with "extraordinary visions and dreams, people who not only dream about a better future, but also a plan to get there. People who can change the game".
"We were genuinely inspired to learn about Stephanie and her story," Björn Borg managing director Jonas Lindberg Nyvang said.
"The power and the courage that it takes for a 14-year-old to not give up in a situation like this, to see possibilities where others see problems, is exceptional."
Stephanie told Fairfax Media last month that she had been dancing since she was two but stopped performing when she converted to Islam in 2010.
She doubted her chances of becoming a professional ballerina as she struggled to find schools that catered both to her religious beliefs and dance needs.
Yet she watched around her as Misty Copeland became the first African-American principal dancer, Noor Tagouri became the first American news anchor to wear a hijab and Emirati weightlifter Amna Al Haddad took to the world stage with her headscarf on.
She launched the crowd-sourcing fund in January with an aim of raising $10,000 to train full-time at ballet school.
Eventually, she would like to use her talents to open a performing arts school in Sydney that caters to dancers of different backgrounds.
"I've gotten those looks or those little whispers from people saying that I can't do it, and there are some parts of the ballet world that only see me for the clothes I wear, or the beliefs I have," Stephanie, a year 9 student, said last month.
"But this means everything to me. I think I can bring people together through dance and inspire some young people from different races that might be a bit disengaged."
Stephanie, her two brothers and their Australian father and Russian-born mother, who live in Sydney's south-west, converted to Islam in 2010.
Her family, her friends at high school and complete strangers have provided endless support.
However, some strict Muslims believe dancing is "haram", or forbidden, and have left negative comments on social media.
"I think that's what may have stopped some other Muslims from following a career they want, but I know what I'm doing is right and I'm going to keep doing it," she said.
"It's not just about me doing ballet. It's about Muslims becoming engineers or TV presenters or writers."
