MAGHAZI, Gaza Strip -- Every morning as the sun rises and light begins to flood this coastal enclave, Inas Nofal is up, dressed and ready to go out for her daily run.
While that should not seem unusual for someone training for a competition, the sight of Nofal, 15, running up and down the streets of the refugee camp where she lives in loose-fitting, modest-looking running gear and a hijab is singular.
She is Gaza's only competitive female runner.
Since the militant Islamist movement Hamas took over Gaza in 2007 and barred mixed groups of men and women in many public activities, female athletes have faced wide-ranging restrictions. Girls rarely participate in sports, and if they do it is behind closed doors.
A marathon scheduled to take place there in 2013 was canceled by the United Nations because Hamas would not allow women to participate.
Nofal, the youngest of four sisters, initially started running in a closed stadium but ventured out to run in the streets in December.
At first, she faced verbal abuse from people shocked to see a young woman exercising in public. But support from her family, particularly her father, who rides alongside her in his car, spurred her on. Now the taunts have turned to support and admiration.
Gazans are realizing this young runner is serious and talented.
"I started running in school, in my sports class. One of my teachers saw me and told my father, who supported me, then I found myself in this kind of sport," Nofal said in a recent interview. "My family, and especially my father, have helped me to keep on going until I reached the point of being the only female runner in Gaza."
Her father, Mohammed Nofal, said his support is not even a question.
"I love my four daughters, and I see the life through them. Inas has chosen to be a runner, so I am standing with her till the end," he said.
Before Hamas took over, female athletes in Gaza were viewed as pioneers. The runner Sanna Abubkheet was one of only three athletes, and the first and only woman, to represent the Palestinians at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.
Nofal is also hoping to compete, despite the obstacles she faces. Her actions have inspired other young women to join her in her training, albeit just in the stadium for now.
"Inas is the best runner in Gaza at the moment," said her coach, Sami Nateel, a former runner who has participated in many local and international competitions.
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