Ibtihaj Muhammad makes U.S. history after wearing a hijab to compete in the Olympics

Imagine making US history while competing in the Olympics.

Well that's exactly what happened to Ibtihaj Muhammad when she took part in the women's saber fencing event at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro on Monday and became the first American to don a hijab in the event's history.

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Muhammad crashed out of the competition in the Round of 16 against Ukraine's Olena Kravatska however she made a huge impact during her first-ever Olympic experience.

“A lot of people don’t believe that Muslim women have voices or that we participate in sport,” Muhammad told Associated Press on Monday, moments after she was eliminated from competition she spent years training for.

“And it’s not just to challenge misconceptions outside the Muslim community but within the Muslim community. I want to break cultural norms.

“At the end of the day I feel like it’s me in sport and representing my country and my community. I feel like it’s bigger than myself,” she said. “I’m thankful to God for the experience and allowing me to even be present in this moment."

Muhammad, who will go home without a medal however her family couldn't be more proud of her and her father told the Associated Press that this was meant to be her "destiny" and they couldn't be more proud of her.

Of wearing a hijab to compete, Muhammed said: "How can you not see that Muslims are like any other group? We’re conservatives and liberals," she continued.

"There’s women who cover and women who don’t. There are white Muslims, Arab Muslims, African-American Muslims. There are so many Muslim countries that have women as their heads of state and there are those things I want people to be aware of and see that not just those women but Muslim women who participate in sport like the Saudi Arabian team, the Kuwaiti team, the American team now. Those are the images I want people to see.”

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