KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 2 – Egypt’s Doaa Elghobashy made history at the 2016 Rio Olympics when she became the first beach volleyball player to compete wearing a hijab. The iconic photo of her and her bikini-clad opponent Kira Walkenhorst smashing went viral on social media.
“They don’t tell me to wear a bikini,” the beach volleyball player told the Swedish newspaper Express.
Elghobashy returns to the Paris Olympics this year as Marwa Abdelhady’s partner.
In the games against Brazil, Italy and Spain, the contrast was stark: Elghobashy and Abdelhady were dressed in black from head to toe and wore a red T-shirt, while their opponents wore bikinis.
“I’m not telling you to wear a hijab and you’re not telling me to wear a bikini. Nobody can tell me how to dress. It’s a free country; everyone should be able to dress how they want.”
The hijab has been a focus of these Olympic Games because in France the wearing of hijabs and other religious symbols is prohibited by law in public schools and among civil servants; this ban also extends to French female athletes.
Muslim French sprinter Sounkamba Sylla, who wears a hijab and is part of the French 400-meter relay team, expressed her disappointment on Instagram that her hijab would prevent her from taking part in the opening ceremony on the Seine.
“You have been selected for the Olympic Games being organized in your country, but you cannot attend the opening ceremony because you are wearing a headscarf,” Sylla posted.
The ban had already attracted attention before the start of the Olympic Games.
While foreign athletes are not affected by this regulation, The Telegraph reported that several human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, condemned the ban in a letter to the International Olympic Committee and urged it to intervene.
“The bans imposed by the French sports authorities are discriminatory and prevent Muslim female athletes who choose to wear a hijab from exercising their human right to play sports without discrimination,” the letter said.
Marwa Abdelhady in action as Doaa Elghobashy looks on during the match. — Reuters pic
Abdelhady said Express She does not support the hijab ban for French female athletes.
“I prefer playing with a hijab than with a bikini,” said Elghobashy. The Telegraph.
“It may not be ideal for some, but for you it’s OK. It’s about freedom; I feel comfortable and good. The hijab is a part of me. It’s not the same for everyone.”
