Tasneem Habib sky dives for IKCA

At IKCA, we’ve elected Tasneem Habib as our very own Wonder Woman. Since the New Year, she’s embarked on one strenuous hike after another, in preparation to take Imran Khan’s cancer appeal to the base of the tallest mountain on earth. Just when we all thought she couldn’t outdo herself, Tasneem went and topped everything by jumping out of a plane over the Dubai Palm.

When we spoke to Tasneem after the dive, we asked if she wasn’t nervous at all. She was of course, Tasneem admits, but tried to focused instead on the amazing views. “I’d seen aerial views of the palm so many times on documentaries and travel shows,” she says, “but never in a million years would I have ever thought I would be flying over it myself, and breathing in the Arabian hot airstream at that height –well, trying to any way.”

What do you mean?

“No one had told me that when you leap out at 13,000 feet at ground temperatures at 37-40 celsius, you can’t breathe! I had to pace myself and work out a rhythm as I was free falling. This was a big shock to the system and I guess it was good breathing practice for the Everest challenge!”

I can’t imagine you’d be able to prepare for something like that. Was there anything you did do to prepare yourself for other aspects of the jump?

“Not at all, my strategy in getting prepared for the jump was to have no strategy (!) I tried my best not to think about it until the day and it seemed to work well. However I must admit, the night before the jump I was freaking out, as I realised there was a lot to loose if I did any damage to my body. This would put me out of the main challenge for the charity, The Everest Base Camp challenge which is now a matter of weeks away. All I can say it was a very sleepless night!”

Tasneem explains that she’d recently sustained damage to her ankles, which had only just recovered. This was one of her concerns. “I also remembered from what people had told me that when the parachute opens it jolts you up with great force- and since I also have back issues I was worried that it may aggravate this. But there was no way I was backing down, the funds for the cancer patients who were at risk of disease progression everyday helped me to focus on what I was doing it for. My life was in God’s hands and it was simple as that.

In the video of your jump, I noticed you making some hand gestures when you were in the air. What were those for?

I was given an additional challenge by my beautiful nieces, who wanted me to remember them while I dived over the palm; I was asked to make hand gestures in their initials: L (Laiba) and A (Amal). This together with trying to remember my skydive positions for balance (as well as breathing) was a challenge in itself! As you can imagine they were two very happy girls when they saw the media footage.

Despite her concerns and those last minute nerves, Tasneem completed her dive spectacularly. Her fundraising has brought hope to thousands of desperate patients at Pakistan’s Shaukat Khanum Hospitals. Tasneem is very close to reaching her £4800 fundraising target now. You can support her efforts by donating on her JustGiving page Here.

A British Pathan Pakistani, born and raised in Redditch, Tasneem is currently based in Arizona, working for Roche at it’s Global Cancer Diagnostics Headquarters (Roche Tissue Diagnostics) as an International Product Manager. She is a plane flying, canyon hiking, marathon running, philanthropic soul with an insatiable passion for travel and pushing her own limits. You can read more about her and her commitment to the Everest Base Camp Challenge Here.

If you’d like to take part in the Everest Base Camp Challenge for IKCA, it’s not too late. Sign Up today and help us bring hope to the men, women and children who rely on our help to have a fighting chance against cancer.