ZARA CARBONELL, Manila

What has been your biggest achievement?

I feel as though that being a female in sports entrepreneurship is a win already. Being in a male-dominated industry and breaking barriers everyday while creating opportunities for more women to be a part of it have been fulfilling.

Knowing that when I have daughters someday, they’ll be brave enough to tackle a sport and not just take space but equity in it, because their mom built safe spaces for women to play, will have been a success. 

Can you share a silent win or personal success that often goes or have gone unnoticed?

In most days, having new athletes on the field may seem like another day to us when in reality, this wasn’t the case pre-MFL. It was a locked-up community, highly niched, and full of nuances. Today, those barriers have opened up, and more and more athletes get to be a part of this growing community.

Best career advice you’ve received.

You’re doing better than you think.

Every time kids show up wanting to play flag football is a silent win for me. Also, in the last years we’ve built the Manila Flag Football League (MFL) from the ground up, championing our Filipino athletes and letting girls take up just as much space on the field were things I celebrated.

Most of the time, we forget to celebrate our wins because every time we accomplish something, we keep raising the bar higher before taking it all in. My mentor has set a habit in me to recognize and celebrate the wins when they happen before challenging myself to higher stakes.

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Zara wears the Cloud Cruiser Zip-Up Sweater. Shop it here.