Islamic Reflections on Women’s Sporting Bodies in Relation to Sexuality, Modesty and Privacy

By Sertaç SEHLIKOGLU

During 2012 London Olympics, heated debates arose around the question of Muslim women’s participation to Olympics. Some of these discussions problematized the position of countries which have never sent a female Olympian (Brunei, Saudi Arabia and Qatar), while others discussed under which conditions headscarved (hijabi) Olympians should participate in the games. Although they come from very different ideaological, political, and religious perspectives, all these debates and interventions claimed the right to exercise power on the female body. As an activist blogger on Muslim women’s involvement in sports and a young anthropologist, I have been inquiring issues of women’s agency, desire, and privacy in my field research.  As I have been interviewing Muslim women doing sports in women-only gyms in Istanbul, I have asked them about their views on involvement in sports, privacy, modesty, and public sexuality.

In order to have a better understanding of the debates on Muslim sportswomen, one needs to keep two points in mind: The first one is the Islamic point that sports requires body movements that trouble the perceptions on women’s public visibility and public sexuality. The second point however is linked to a broader question on the boundaries between the masculine and the feminine; which are perceived to be physically yet discursively trespassed by professional sportswomen, who are therefore considered as troubling subjects.

The literature on sports and gender also emphasizes that women face higher levels of constraints than men regarding involvement in leisure and sports both in Western and in Muslim contexts (Shaw 1994, 1996; Henderson and Bialeschki 1993). While several scholars bring forward the original teachings of Islam which actually favor and advocate physical development sports for both sexes (Mahfoud 2008, Pfitzer 2008), several others criticize the ways in which Muslim women’s involvement in sports are overshadowed and restricted by hegemonic masculine discourses (Di-Capua 2006). Among those discussions, I am interested in whether and how Muslim women have developed strategies to increase and legitimize their involvement in sports both in the Muslim and non-Muslim and/or secular world.

MUSLIM WOMEN AND SPORTS: A CONTESTED AREA

Two female participants of Olympics from Turkey with other fencers, 1936. Image courtesy Sertac Sehlikoglu

We can group Muslim sportswomen into three based on their participation in international games. The first group of women is composed of those who are not following the Islamic dress code, some of whom do not believe that such dress code (ie, headscarf) is Islamic. Historically, this group has been involved in international games for much longer than the other two, since modernists in many Muslim societies viewed sports as a means of breaking women’s segregation and including them in public life in the early 20th century. The first Muslim women attended the 1936 Berlin Olympics: Suat Aşeni and Halet Çambel represented Turkey in fencing, 36 years after first women were allowed to compete in the Olympic Games. Turkey, as a country which accepts international dress regulations for different branches of sports, does not have any problem in sending its successful sportswomen to the Olympic Games, as long as the sportswomen follow the international dress codes in sports.

The second group of Muslim women is composed of those who believe in modesty and prefer observing Islam in terms of the dress code as well. These women often face other rules, such as those in international games, which forbid their headscarf based on safety and security concerns. Muslim sports activists propose “safe hijabs” to negotiate with security concerns and suggest alternative styles for different branches. FIFA, for instance, was in contact with designers for an approvable headgear to be used in international soccer games when this article was being written.

A third group of Muslim women however, are not allowed to participate in sports, not because of their religious choices or international game regulations, but because of the regulations of their own country. Iranian sportswomen are an example to this, since the branches of sports Iranian women are allowed to participate are limited: Lida Fariman, Manije Kazemi (archery), Marjan Kalhor (skiing), and Sara Khoshjamal Fekri (taekwondo) are four examples, who have represented Iran in the Olympic games in earlier years within clothes regulated by their country. In these Iranian cases, the dress codes of the sport are in line with Iran’s national dress code for modesty to be preserved. Similarly, and unfortunately, there are countries, such as the Southeast Asian nation of Brunei, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which have not sent any single woman to the Olympic games until 2012. Such outfit regulations influence female citizens of these countries whether the sportwomen themselves are Muslims or not, since they are bounded with the codes both at national and at international level.

What all these groups of Muslim women seem to be sharing is that their bodies are at the center of heated ideological, political, or religious debates and contestations at national and international platforms; as these women are subjected to different forms of idealized discourses and pressures (of secularist and Islamist patriarchies) on multiple fronts.

The fatwas regarding sports are very explanatory in understanding the “Islamic” attitudes. Although Islamic rules do not necessarily pose an obstacle to the participation of women in sports, they can shape the sporting experience of women as gendered subjects. All of the fatwas on Islamic web sites concerning physical exercise begin with the importance of sports for health and encourage individuals to be physically active with reference to hadiths, with minor warnings on violence, fanaticism, or hooliganism. When it comes to women’s involvement in sports, the fatwas start using a more regulative language in details. Almost all of the suggested regulations and rules about women’s involvement in sports are related to gender segregation, and, more importantly, bodily exposure. Fatwas specify several rules that must be followed:  First, men and women must be segregated, since mixed environments may open channels for seduction, temptation and corruption. Fatwas reject any physical exercise that stir sexual urge or encourage moral perversion such as women practicing dancing and being watched by the public since each one of the these acts are coded as “sexual(ly appealing).” Indeed, those within Saudi Arabia who oppose the inclusion of women in sports do so because future implications and consequences of women’s involvement in sports might be un-Islamic although there is nothing in Islam that prohibits women from physical activity or even competitive sports.

Most of the time, the most convenient sport for Muslim sportswomen who have concerns about their body movements or Islamic veiling are the branches that do not require too much body movements – the movements which are perceived as ‘sexually appealing’ such as movement of hips (running) and breasts (jumping). The most popular sports for women from predominantly Muslim countries have been athletics, power lifting, fencing, archery, martial arts and table tennis. Such branches are more convenient especially if women are professionals and need to spend hours everyday for training. Women can easily find spaces for training and do not need to seek for special dedicated spaces.

WHAT IS THE BORDER OF VEIL, SEXUALITY AND SPORTS?

Set of photos shown to informants and asked what they think. Image courtesy Sertac Sehlikoglu

The Islamic veiling, whether in the format of a simple headscarf or in more sophisticated outfits, does have a spiritual value for Muslim women as they cover their bodies during prayer. Such a value is too important to underestimate. Yet, the borders of a veiled body also stay on the edge of the gender binary of modern Islamic heterosexual norms. As apparent in the fatwas, less veiled body of a Muslim woman arouses hyper-femininity yet reflects homoerotic boundaries of women in Islamic cultures. However, the body of a Muslim sportswoman is troubling not only because it is sexually arousing as a female body, but also because it trespasses into the masculine zone.

During my field research on women-only gyms in Istanbul, I interviewed 40 women on their involvement in physical exercise and how their involvement is shaped or constrained by people closest to them at home or at work. These women prefer such homosocial spaces simply because they do not feel “comfortable”, as they put it, when they can be seen by men. I showed my informants, who were sporty but not involved in any professional sports, photos of various Muslim sportswomen taken during international games. They were all familiar with physical exercise and accepted Islamic gender norms at one level, therefore preferred homosocial spaces to exercise. The photos women were shown included Sania Mirza (Indian tennis player, non-veiled), Roqaya Al-Gassra (Bahraini Athlete, veiled), female wrestlers, volleyball players, and weightlifters. Amongst all, Al-Gassra aroused the most mixed feelings amongst women. Women did not feel comfortable about Al-Gassra’s look since she “looked like a guy” and she was revealing her body although she was covering her head. On the other hand, most of my veiled informants were proud to see a ‘veiled’ (not a Muslim but veiled) woman in international games but they still found it unnecessary. The Olympics and international games therefore, raise the debate on the ways in which a woman’s body is exposed to international audiences which is linked to complex feelings on national pride (and how this sense of pride and nation is perceived), women’s public sexuality, modesty and Islamic pride (which also takes gendered forms).  Indeed, Al-Gassra, as a professional veiled athlete, was becoming part of such Islamic pride and become target of criticisms for two reasons: for her low-veiling and tomboy look. Thus, Islamic pride of a woman is expected to be both normative and modest; both of which are violated in the case of Al-Gassra.

Source: http://www.anthropology-news.org/index.php/2012/08/17/boundaries-of-a-veiled-female-body/

In the Name of the Game(s) – Muslim Female Athletes at the 2012 London Olympics

The 2012 London Olympics have had a strong focus on women: for the first time women will be competing in all sports and every country has sent at least one female athlete.

Zulfiya Chinshanlo, Olympic gold medalist in weightlifting. Image via the Toronto Star.

While this does all look mighty good on paper, “male” sports remain overall more popular and male athletes are often better paid, make use of better facilities (flying business vs. flying coach) and receive more face time than their female counterparts. And while much of the attention female athletes receive isfocused on their looks (beach volleyball anyone?), the major decision-makers in sports are still predominantly male. (It should be added that 1984 gold medalist Nawal el Moutawakel is now the first woman from a Muslim nation in the role of Vice President of the International Olympic Committee.)

For Brunei, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, this will be the first time sending a female athlete to the Olympic Games. All three countries are, and this has been pointed out numerous times, Muslim-majority nations. Both Qatar and Brunei let the world know early on that they will be sending in female athletes for these Games. The tiny Asian nation of Brunei is sending one female this year, hurdler Maziah Mahusin, which does not seem like a lot, but in 2008 Brunei did not even participate in the Games, and the country has sent in only four athletes to previous Games. Mahusin is part of a delegation that consists of three athletes in total. Qatar has been more successful, sending sizeable teams to previous Games.  This year, Qatar has sent four female athletes, competing in four different disciplines, and says it will continue to promote women’s sports in the country. This is no surprise; Qatar has aspirations to host several major international sport events (lost the bid for the 2020 Olympics), and will host the FIFA Soccer World Cup in 2022.

And then Saudi Arabia: a country without a real history of competitive sports for women, with a strict female dress code, and under conservative rule. Was Saudi Arabia going to let women even compete? And yes, so it was. After all, even Saudi Arabia cares when it comes to the Olympic Games. It is doubtful whether this will actually change the climate for women athletes within the country, but let’s remain positive. Sarah Attar, one of the two athletes, is a child of a Saudi father and American mother and has been running competitively in California, without headscarf, but with Saudi citizenship. It is expected that Sarah Attar will compete in more conservative attire, when representing her country, as she has already done several interviews and public appearances while donning a headscarf. The other athlete is Wojdan Ali Seraj Abdulrahim Shaherkani, a Saudi judoka, who is living in Saudi Arabia and has been trained at home by her father. While it was for a long time unclear whether or not Shaherkani would actually compete, because judo has banned the headscarf in the sports, she did compete on August 3rd with an adjusted headscarf. She lost her match in 82 seconds.

It shouldn’t be all about the headscarf, of course, but a lot of the news seems to be.  The United Arab Emirates weightlifting athlete, Khadijah Mohammad, has been training and competing in front of the camera without a headscarf, but will wear a headscarf when competing at the Olympics. The participation of the UAE weightlifters in the Olympics was, in fact, even pending on whether or not a more modest attire would be permitted in this discipline. There is no ruling in the UAE that women should wear a headscarf in public, and the other female athlete representing the UAE, Ethiopia-born Bethlem Deslagn Belayneh, does not, and is not expected to wear the hijab either.

The recent decision by FIFA to allow the headscarf on the soccer field came too late for the Iranian soccer team. They will not be competing at this year’s Olympics, despite the fact that they are considered to a be a strong team and capable to make a difference on the Olympic stage. There will be other Iranian female athletes, who all have to wear the headscarf, competing in sports, like shooting, rowing and table tennis.

For some athletes, their personal choice of wearing the veil has left them in a dilemma. Egyptian pentathlete Aya Medany, for example, has been a medal hopeful at the previous Olympics, and even though she disappointed in Beijing, placing “only” 8th, she is once again considered a major contender for the gold medal in her discipline. She even made it to the BBC shortlist of African athletes to watch. While she would love to get to the medal stage this time around and prove her abilities as an athlete, her recent decision to start wearing the headscarf has had a huge impact on her athletic career. As a hijabi, Medany wanted to compete in the swimming section of her sport in a “modest swimsuit”, but she is, according to international regulations, not allowed to do so. Aya Medany is now contemplating to leave the sport just after the Olympics, at age 24.

Feta Ahamada is a female athlete, competing at the 100m sprint at the upcoming Olympics. She hails from the Comoros, a Muslim island nation just off the east coast of continental Africa, and while she chooses not to cover up, she stresses that it should be the decision of the athlete how she wants to compete. Due to her wish to pursue an athletic career, Ahamada has moved to France; she says that she is very thankful to her parents that they have supported her in this decision, and acknowledges that this must not have been easy to them. Ahamada did qualify in the preliminaries for the first round of the 100m, but has failed to make it further.

Kosovar/Kosovan athletes were hoping to represent their country for the first time at these Olympics, but like many nations, international sporting federations have yet to accept Kosovo’s status as an independent nation. In May the International Olympic Committee had turned down Kosovo’s bid to the Olympics, leaving athletes look for different options, like judoka Majlinda Kelmindi, who holds an Albanian passport too, who will now compete for Albania. For Lumturie and Utara Rama, cousins and both shooters, this decision means that they are not able to compete at the Olympics at all.

Wrestler Aisuluu Tynybekova is the first female wrestler to compete for her country, Kyrgyzstan, and because of that, and a lack of financial funds, she has trained with male wrestlers only. This was not the only hurdle Tynybekova had to overcome to reach London 2012, she was also charged with hooliganism, allegedly beating up another girl last April. The girl’s family was looking for Tynybekova’s disqualification from the Olympic team, but as she is a medal hopeful, the trial has been put on hold until she returns from the Games. She could face up to five years in prison, if found guilty. While Tynybekova meets resistance as a Kyrgyz girl competing in wrestling, in Somalia (young) women have been competing for the one spot available at the London Olympics in very difficult circumstances. Their stadium was bullet-ridden, and there was little support for female athletes at all. Zamzam Mohamed Farah is the one female athlete to represent Somalia in athletics, running the 400m.

Sadaf Rahimi, a young Afghan boxer, hoped to be the first Afghan woman to represent her country in this new Olympic addition: female boxing. She had received a wildcard invitation, and trained hard to get her performance up to international standards. Unfortunately for her, on July 18 the International Boxing Association decided that Rahimi could not compete in boxing, because they cannot guarantee her safety in the ring when she meets opponents of completely different calibre. The only female athlete to represent Afghanistan this year is Tahmina Kohestani, who will compete in the 100m sprint on August 3rd. Before the Games she was subject to frequent harassment, from people who thought that it wasagainst their honor that a Muslim Afghan girl would represent Afghanistan at the Games.

There was a completely different first for Malaysian Nur Suryani Mohamad Taibi, who was 8 months pregnant when she competed in shooting last weekend at the Olympics, which makes her the “most pregnant” athlete ever to compete at the Games. She did not make it to the finals, however, but remains positive about her future career, promising to keep competing after the birth.

The first medal for a Muslim woman at these 2012 London Olympics went to Kazakhstani weightlifter Zulfiya Chinshanlo, who won a gold medal in the 53 kilogram category, and has bettered her own world record by doing so. Another Kazakhstani athlete, Maiya Maneza, won gold in weightlifting too, a few days later. Both girls are, according to Kazakh information, Dungans. The Dungan are Muslims of Chinese origin, who fled to Central Asia in the 19th century. According to officials from the Chinese Hunan Province Sports Bureau, however, both girls are, in fact, Chinese, which would explain the fact that neither of girls were able to speak Kazakh, and both spoke only a little Russian, when a journalist visited their training camp earlier this year.

Of course the 2012 Olympics are far from over, and there are many other stories still evolving, and I am sure, there are many other stories concerning Muslim female athletes that I have missed. With over 10,000 athletes from 205 countries competing, it is just mission impossible to keep track of them all! Feel free to add links to stories and results of Muslim female athletes in the comments!

Source: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/mmw/2012/08/in-the-name-of-the-games-muslim-female-athletes-at-the-2012-london-olympics/

Waving Hijab? Nah! Waving Flag!

By Tales From a Hijabi Footballer

Today was the 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremonies. The Parade of Nations has always been my favourite part as it humanizes the Olympics and lets us see the different teams express their excitement. Dreams will be realized and hopes will be crushed. It is also where inspiration and awe will burst out.

The Parade of Nations is about the athletes. It’s about respecting their communities and uniting people under the umbrella of Fair Play and Love of Sport. To carry the flag ahead of a country is an undeniable honour.

I was quite excited to see so many strong, talented women lead the charge into the stadium.

More thrilling was, how many predominantly Muslim countries (12 in fact: Tajikistan,Qatar, Morocco, Indonesia, Turkey, Jordan , Iraq, Djibouti , Comoros , Brunei , Bahrain , Albania ) had selected women as flag bearers.

These phenomenal athletes must fight through the physical rigors their chosen sport. They must train, focus, balance home life, studies, work, family and community involvement. Some must undoubtedly navigate through a system of discrimination with a lack of understanding and support.

I’m a footballer. I wear hijab and openly identify as a Muslim. But, I live in a country where my participation in open sport is allowed and fostered. No doubt, I am privileged.

Flag bearer Mavzuna Chorieva from Tajikistan, had to enter competitions using her brother’s identification and cutting her hair short because a female boxer was unheard of. She hid her identity to have access to a sport she loved.

Maziah Hussain of Brunei, is the first hijab-wearing athlete to represent her country. So is Bahia Al-Hamad of Qatar. Both women beamed with pride as they led their countrymen through the parade. In fact, they are of the first women to be allowed to participate from their homelands.

To see these women carrying their flag with so much grace and dignity is enough to make any women’s heart burst with joy.

Muslim countries represented at these games have historically faced much scrutiny. Their male vis-à-vis female team ratios may have been quite low. They have always been critiqued for lack of inclusion of women and rightfully so. They may also be from a region currently embroiled in war, political insecurity, poverty and ingrained systems of patriarchy .

Saudi Arabia is sending two women as part of their National Team. It has been getting a tremendous amount of press as the announcement was made very recently.

From a country where women can not yet drive, a young woman , Wojdan Shaherkani, will represent her nation in Judo- if she is allowed to compete with her hijab.

However, the issue in this case isn’t whether the athletes wear hijab or even practice Islam. It is that these women they are strong enough and talented enough to make an Olympic Team. Representing Muslim nations that adhere strictly to tradition and may not always be open to women participating so openly is a huge step and one that deserves recognition. These athletes are shattering assumptions and are demanding to give their best.

It is an honour to watch

That 12 women have been selected to be at the forefront of the world’s most watched sporting event, is unprecedented. They are being recognized for their athletic achievements and potential while their heritage is celebrated. It illustrates that the world can be a place of encouragement, acceptance and inspiration.

And it has room for brilliant athletes, Muslim women included.

This is a virtue that I cling to and hope that my daughter and her daughters will defend.

As these athletes are showcased globally, Muslim women flag-bearers, are blazing trails and sprinting in the right direction – to the podium.
Source: http://footybedsheets.tumblr.com/post/28184241618/waving-hijab-nah-waving-flag

For first time, women from every nation ready to rock Olympics

For the first time ever, all 205 countries competing in the Olympic games are sending female athletes. NBC's Meredith Vieira reports and speaks with sprinter Tahmina Kohistani, the sole woman on Afghanistan's Olympic team.

By Scott Stump

When Frenchman Baron Pierre de Coubertin spearheaded the first modern Olympics in 1896, he excluded female competitors, saying it would be “impractical, uninteresting, unaesthetic, and incorrect.’’

It may have taken 116 years, but every nation participating in this year’s Olympics has offered a direct rebuttal to that antiquated opinion. “The Year of the Women’’ may be upon us in London.

For the first time in Olympic history, all 205 countries participating will send at least one female competitor. Brunei, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are sending women for the first time, while the United States will have more women (269) than men (261) for the first time in history. That’s a far cry from 1900, when women first competed in the Olympics in Paris and comprised all of 22 athletes out of the 997 overall competitors.

While sprinter Allyson Felix, swimmer Missy “The Missile” Franklin and a star-studded U.S. gymnastics team may grab the spotlight in London, Afghan sprinter Tahmina Kohistani is one of the athletes most emblematic of the strides made by female Olympians. The 22-year-old is only the third woman in the history of her war-torn nation to compete in the Olympics, and the only female on its team this year.

“Sometimes I think it is a dream, but I am here,’’ Kohistani told Meredith Vieira in an interview that aired on TODAY Tuesday. “It was very hard and very difficult for me. A lot of people are supporting me, but a lot of people don’t, and they don’t like me. They just hate me.’’

Several Middle Eastern nations came under international pressure to include women this year, resulting in the historic amount of female participation from across the world. Kohistani admitted to being torn between honoring her Muslim faith and achieving her dream of reaching the Olympics. She will run wearing a traditional head scarf and Islamic uniform.

“Some time they were saying that I’m not a good girl because I’m doing sport,’’ she told Vieira. “They were saying that I’m not a good Muslim. There are a lot of Afghan woman who (do) not accept me in my rules, in my way. They think I am wrong, but I am not wrong.’’

Jeff J Mitchell / Getty Images

Amy Le Peilbet of the U.S. women's Olympic soccer team in action during a July 19 training session in Glasgow, Scotland. Soccer is just one of the many sports that has drawn female Olympians from all 205 participating nations.

The support of her family has helped Kohistani persevere in the face of criticism. She is a long shot to get a medal in the 100-meter dash, but just her presence may have an impact on future Afghan women.

“If I got a medal, I think I will start a new way for the girls (and) women of Afghanistan,’’ she said. “They will believe themselves that they can do everything they want.’’  

Increased opportunities to participate and more Olympic role models for young girls have helped drive women to the forefront in the Olympics, particularly in the United States. The introduction of the landmark Title IX legislation in 1972 that provided for equal opportunities for women in intercollegiate athletics spawned a generation of Olympic stars.

AP Photo/Boys & Girls Clubs of America/Gregory Smith

Former Olympian Dominique Dawes is deeply involved in athletic opportunities for girls and women today.

Three-time Olympian Dominique Dawes, who was part of the gold medal-winning gymnastics team at the 1996 Games, is living proof of the impact of Title IX. She continues to push athletic opportunities and fitness for women as part of Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!’’ campaign to combat child obesity and as a co-chair of the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition.

Slideshow: Speeding through life: Olympians then and now

“Title IX has played a huge role,’’ Dawes told TODAY.com on a conference call. “This is the 40th anniversary of Title IX, which was responsible for opening up a number of opportunities for females in sports. I give applause to all of those pioneers that have really pushed for Title IX to give women equal opportunity.”

The increased opportunities for women in the Olympics also have been reflected in the addition of several sports in the past decade. In 2000, tae kwon do, weight lifting and triathlon were added, and women’s boxing will make its debut in London.

That’s a far cry from the 1900 Olympics, when women only participated in yachting, equestrian, croquet, tennis and golf. Margaret Abbott made history when she became the first American woman to finish first in an event, winning the nine-hole golf tournament.

Even women playing non-mainstream sports like beach volleyball are now household names, as Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh are known internationally after winning gold medals in 2004 and 2008.

“I’m very excited to hear that us women are taking advantage of opportunities,’’ Dawes said. “It’s not about having more people (in the Olympics); it’s about us reaching our full potential and taking advantage of opportunities to the best of our abilities.’’

Source: http://todayinlondonblog.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/24/12926129-for-first-time-women-from-every-nation-ready-to-rock-olympics#.UBEGzc7U848.facebook

London 2012 Olympics: Saudi Arabian women to compete

Saudi Arabia is to send two female athletes to complete in the London 2012 Games, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has said.

Sarah Attar will compete in the 800m and Wodjan Ali Seraj Abdulrahim Shahrkhani in the judo competition.

The Saudi authorities lifted a ban on women from the Gulf kingdom competing in the Games last month.

The public participation of women in sport is still fiercely opposed by many Saudi religious conservatives.

IOC President Jacques Rogge said it was "very positive news" and "an encouraging evolution".

"I am pleased to see that our continued dialogue has come to fruition," he said in a statement.

The IOC, keen to ensure "gender balance" at the Games, had been speaking to the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee about the issue.

Speaking from her training base in the US, Sarah Attar said: "It's such a huge honour and I hope that it can really make some big strides for women over there to get more involved in sport."

'Dignity'

The inclusion of the Saudi women means that, for the first time in the history of the Games, there will be a female entrant from every competing nation.

Female athletes from Qatar and Brunei are also due to attend for the first time.

Brunei's Maziah Mahusin will complete in the athletics, while Qatar has entered athletes into the swimming (Nada Arkaji), athletics (Noor al-Malki), table tennis (Aya Magdy) and shooting (Bahiya al-Hamad).

Bahiya al-Hamad is also set to carry the Qatari flag at the opening ceremony, in what she said was a "truly historic moment".

New York-based Human Rights Watch said the inclusion of Saudi women was a step forward.

"It's an important precedent that will create space for women to get rights, and it will be hard for Saudi hardliners to roll back", the organisation's Minky Worden said.

There is almost no public tradition of women participating in sport in Saudi Arabia, and officials have found it difficult to find athletes who could meet the minimum criteria for competing.

Officials have also said that female competitors will need to dress in such a way as "to preserve their dignity".

This is likely to mean loose-fitting garments and a scarf covering the hair but not the face.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18813543

Brunei to Send Its First Female Athlete to the Olympics

By Marc MCDONALD

HONG KONG — The International Olympic Committee banned South Africa from the Olympics for nearly 30 years, until 1992, because of the repugnant official policy of apartheid that kept black athletes from competing. Nevertheless, the I.O.C. has continued to allow three nations that discriminate against female athletes to continue to participate in the Games.

“We’re pressing them” has long been the I.O.C.’s answer to criticisms about the so-called gender apartheid that bars women and girls from participating in the Olympics, not to mention competitive sports, recreational activities, even physical education classes.

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the Southeast Asian nation of Brunei have never sent a female athlete to an Olympics, although they have all sent male athletes. That situation appears likely to change this year at the Summer Olympics in London.

A senior Olympic official from Brunei told Rendezvous on Wednesday that the country has formally submitted to the I.O.C. its list of eligible athletes for the London Games — including, for the first time ever, at least one woman, Maziah Mahusin, a hurdler and 400-meter runner.

Ms. Mahusin, who turned 19 last Sunday, trains and competes without a head scarf. She is still developing as an athlete and would be no threat to win a medal in London. She finished last in her qualifying heat in the 400 at the recent World Indoor Championships in Istanbul.

But the Brunei official said she would compete in London under the I.O.C’s concept of universality — the inclusion of certain competitors even if they do not meet international standards.

The official spoke privately about Ms. Mahusin’s nomination, pending an official announcement by his Olympic committee, which is set for Thursday.

Ms. Mahusin won an Olympic scholarship that pays for living and training expenses leading up to the Games, and she is planning to move to London soon for four months of preparation. The Games begin July 27.

In December, after winning the scholarship, she said in a story in the Brunei Times, “I am excited and nervous because there will be new coaches to work with, and the training regime will be highly intensive compared to Brunei, conducted by high-level athletic coaches.”

Brunei, on the northern coast of the island of Borneo, is a predominantly Muslim sultanate that is rich in oil and gas. With a population of just over 400,000, Brunei has a per capita G.D.P. that is the fifth-highest in the world, according to the most recent Forbes ranking, with an average of more than $48,000 per person.

As my colleagues Jeré Longman and Mary Pilon report, Saudi Arabia also appears set to send female athletes (or possibly just one) to London.

Human Rights Watch has accused the Saudi government of “systematically discriminating against women in sports and physical education.” The group issued a scathing report last month outlining the Saudi situation. The report was titled “Steps of the Devil.”

“The fact that women and girls cannot train to compete clearly violates the Olympic Charter’s pledge to equality and gives the Olympic movement itself a black eye,” said Christoph Wilcke, senior Middle East researcher at Human Rights Watch.

As Jeré and Mary write about Saudi Arabia, Brunei and Qatar:

Saudi Arabia, a monarchy whose legal system is based on Islamic law, is considered the most significant of the three, given its size, international oil influence and severe restrictions placed on women in daily life. While female athletes from Qatar and Brunei have participated in national and regional competitions, Saudi Arabia has essentially barred sports for women, according to Human Rights Watch.

A pan-Arab newspaper based in London, Al Hayat, reported Tuesday that the Saudi Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz has approved the participation of female athletes in London as long as their sports “meet the standards of women’s decency and don’t contradict Islamic laws.”

The International Olympic Committee said in a statement that it met with Saudi Olympic officials last week and that it was “confident that Saudi Arabia is working to include women athletes and officials at the Olympic Games in London.”

Source: http://rendezvous.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/21/saudi-arabia-may-include-women-on-its-olympic-team/