The Mettleset Podcast
The Mettleset Podcast is on a mission to bring you stories of tenacity, courage and mettle from athletes in the Middle East and beyond. From women’s sports and motorsports to adventure, action- and ultra- endurance sports, and everything in between, listeners will get a dose of the region’s most compelling - fun and funny - underreported sports stories every week.
Hosts Dawn Barnable (Sports Communications Professional & Ultra Cyclist) is joined by friends who range from record - and boundary – breaking athletes, world-class explorers, community sports leaders and pro athletes at every stage of their career.
For more info, visit www.themettleset.com and find us on all major socials at @themettleset.
- Update frequency
- every 6 days
- Average duration
- 44 minutes
- Episodes
- 122
- Years Active
- 2022 - 2025
EP45: 🇲🇦🏌🏽♀️The Long Game: Maha Haddioui, the first Arab golfer on the Ladies European Tour, on the mental fortitude required to stay on top in the sport
Hi guys,
Our guest today is from Morocco, a country that was recently rocked by a devastating earthquake. We would like to take a moment to acknowledge the loss that Morocco has experienced and our t…
EP44: 🏔️ 🏃🏽♀️🇧🇭 Move Mountains: Fatema Husain on UTMB and being the first Bahraini - and GCC national woman - to complete the world's toughest ultramarathon
Today’s guest is from one of the flattest countries in the world, Bahrain.
In fact, the highest point in the entire country is only 134m above sea level and that’s not even open to the public. Why i…
EP43: 🇰🇷 🚴🏻♀️ K-Bikepacking: Exploring South Korea’s 600km Four Rivers Path in four (and a half) days
Hello Dawn here,
I hope you’re all doing well. Summer 2023 is over and well, mine was EPIC with not one, but two adventures involving bikes.
Today’s episode is all about bikepacking in South Korea, m…
EP42: 🏊🏼♀️🚴🏾♀️🏃🏻 Triathletes & the Beginner's Mindset: Four triathletes recount their first ever start line experience in the sport
Hi Guys - Afshan here
Dawn and I are enjoying a summer away from our adopted home Dubai, but are always thinking about you, our listeners, and how we can bring you the most diverse and relatable chats…
EP41: 🚴♀️🚴♀️🚴♂️ Ultra-Cycling & the Beginner’s Mindset: Three Ultra-Cyclists share their first race experience
Hi, Dawn here,
I hope you are having a wonderful summer. Before I get into this episode, we want to remind you that we now have a YouTube channel. Expect video episodes - live right now- and new and f…
EP40a: Voices of Challenge Roth 🏊🏼♀️🏃🏼♀️🚴🏾
Hey guys, Afshan here -
I recently came pretty close to being swept away by the fanaticism of cycling spectators that I had only ever seen when sitting on my couch miles away watching livestreams and…
EP40: 🏊🏼♀️🏃🏼♀️🚴🏾 Why is Challenge Roth on every triathlete's bucket list? Race Director Felix Walchshoefer discusses why this record breaking long-distance triathlon in Germany is among the top three races in the world
More than 3,500 triathletes, 7,500 volunteers and 300,000 spectators have been descending on a small town in Germany every summer since 1990.
There’s a reason Challenge Roth is considered among the to…
EP39a: MORE METTLE - with UAE National Team Football Player and Adidas Athlete Areej Al Hammadi
Hi Guys, Afshan here,
You’ve probably listened to our FIFA special episode with UAE National Football Team player and Adidas athlete Areej Al Hammadi last week. And if you haven’t, click through to EP…
EP39: ⚽⚽⚽ and FIFA Women's World Cup: UAE National Team football player and Adidas athlete Areej Al Hammadi on the changing face of women's football in the region and globally
Hello, it’s Afshan
We’re only days away from the 9th edition of the Fifa Women’s World Cup, which is held every four years.
There’s a palpable excitement in the air as women’s football has grown in sta…
EP38: Rewind -🏊🏼♀️🚴🏾♀️🏃🏼♀️ IRONWOMAN: Saudi triathlete Dina Al Tayeb on unintentionally blazing a trail for Arab athletes
Hi, Afshan here -
We’re continuing our rewind series this week as Dawn and I are taking a break for some summer adventure.
But we are also working hard on exciting new content and sports stories from …
EP37: Rewind - HISTORIC: 🧗🏽♀️Mountaineer Nelly Attar, the first Arab woman to summit K2
Hi all,
We hope you're having an amazing summer. We're working on some great new episodes at the moment. We're also having some new adventures that we can't wait to share with you all. In the meantim…
Summer Plans 🇩🇪 🇰🇷 and New Challenges 🇮🇳🇿🇦… A Mid-Year Check-In with Dawn and Afshan
Wow, how is it June already!? So much has (and is happening) at The Mettleset that we decided to do a little mid-year check in to share what’s been happening in our world, and what new challenges we …
EP36: 🚴🏾♀️🏃🏼♀️🏊🏼♀️Sports for Life: Community athlete Najla Hallit on finding the training and life balance to train the long-distance triathlon Challenge Roth
Hi Afshan here,
In a new book by sports journalist Sally Jenkins called The Right Call - What sports teach us about work and life, she says that we are all a combination of light and electricity as mu…
From the Bike to the Barre - Barre Effect’s Nora Hameidani on why Barre if for all athletes
Hello Dawn here,
If you’ve been following along, you know I spend a lot of time on a bike. Particularly in the lead-up to a big race. Like many cyclists or athletes who absolutely love one particular…
EP35: Should cyclists fuel with Haribo gummy bears? Sports and exercise medicine doctor Kate Jordan answers this and other burning questions from athletes
Hey Guys,
Today, we’ve got a special episode with questions about athlete health that you shared with us on our social platforms.
Dr Kate Jordan, a sports and exercise medicine physician at Mediclinic …
EP34: Part2 Female athlete health: Talking hormones, menstrual cycle and menopause with sports and exercise medicine doctor Kate Jordan
Today’s episode is a continuation of our discussion on female athlete health with Dr Kate Jordan, a sports and exercise medicine physician at Mediclinic Parkview Hospital in Dubai.
The first part of …
EP33: Part1 Female athlete health: Sports and Exercise Medicine doctor Kate Jordan on common injuries, LEA and right fuelling for performance and long-term health
Concussions, shoulder troubles, ACL tears, low bone density, Low Energy Availability, menopause …
Sports, and injuries from it, tend to impact female athletes in a different way to their male counterp…
🍰 Let Them Eat Cake 🚵🏽♀️: A preview of Dead Ends & Cake🇨🇭, one of the most fun and accessible ultra cycling races on the calendar
EP32: ⛷️Finding the Perfect Line: First woman on the Saudi Arabia Alpine Skiing Team Sharifa Al Sudairi on why mindset trumps over age in pursuit of competitive advantage ⛷️
No matter at what age you enter a sport, your attitude is what cements your success.
Today’s guest and the first woman to join the Saudi Arabia Alpine Skiing Team, Sharifa Al-Sudairi, epitomises cour…
EP31: 🏁 Rally Jameel: 2023 winning team co-driver Hanna Riehle on living outside her comfort zone and being part of a supportive sports community in the region
When Rally Jameel, the first navigational rally in the region exclusively for women, was launched in Saudi two years ago, we were excited to see how this event with a low barrier to entry would encou…