Zuleikha Chikh

  • Doctoral Researcher
Zuleikha Chikh
Start date: October 2022
Primary supervisor: Dr Steven Bradbury
Secondary supervisor(s): Dr Dominic Malcom

Zuleikha is a Doctoral Researcher in the sociology of sport in the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences. After completing a BSc and MSc in Sport Business Management at the University of Lancashire, she became the President and Company Director of University of Lancashire Students’ Union and served as a governor on the University of Lancashire Board (2020-2022).

Over the last nine years, she has held various community-facing and leadership roles in sport. Through her engagement in sports-based volunteerism, she has worked closely with South Asians, Muslims, refugees and those seeking asylum in football. She has used these experiences to advise and shape strategies at National Governing Bodies and sports charities to facilitate greater representation and inclusion across participation, coaching, refereeing, leadership and governance pathways. At a local level, she served as a board member for Active Lancashire (2021-2025) overseeing the development and delivery of projects across the region to tackle inequality and enhance health, wellbeing and life chances of underrepresented and vulnerable communities. She has been awarded funding from British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) for her contribution to inclusion in university sport. Zuleikha featured on the Muslim Women in Sport Power List in 2019 and in 2021 became the recipient of the Youth Sport Trust Character and Leadership Award.

At Loughborough she has taught across a range of Sport Management undergraduate modules including Introduction to Sport Management, Sport and Social Sciences, Conceptualising Sport, and Leadership and Managing Change.

Zuleikha’s work sits at the intersection of ‘race’, gender and sport. Her current research examines the experiences of racialised minority women participating in sport leadership development programmes in the UK. More broadly, her work is grounded in centralising the voices of racialised minority communities to tackle discrimination, and drive more equitable structures and cultures from grassroots to the senior leadership and governance tiers of sport.

Zuleikha has presented her research to both academic and industry audiences:

  • Chikh, Z., Bradbury, S., Malcolm, D. (2025). The ‘raced’ and gendered experiences of racialised minority women participating in sport leadership programmes in the UK. Sport and Discrimination Conference. German Sports University, Cologne, Germany, June 2024.
  • Chikh, Z., Bradbury, S., Malcolm, D. (2025). The ‘raced’ and gendered experiences of racialised minority women participating in sport leadership programmes in the UK. Women in Sport and Exercise Academic Network conference. Leeds Beckett University. UK, June 2024.

Invited Talks/Panels

  • Chikh, Z. (2025). Breaking Boundaries: Overcoming barriers for Black, Asian and Mixed-heritage (BAMH) women in refereeing. Invited panellist at BAMREF Referee Conference, Notts County FC.
  • Chikh, Z. (2025). Gender Inclusive Behaviours and Active Allyship. Invited presentation at Professional Game Match Officials CORE X programme.
  • Chikh, Z. (2024). Sport and Women’s Rights. Invited panel moderator at Amnesty International UK Amplify Human Rights Festival Conference