Thursday, Sep. 01, 2011

Headscarves in Weight-Lifting Competition

On July 15, Kulsoom Abdullah became the first Muslim woman to compete in the national weight-lifting championships after the International Weightlifting Federation ruled that she would be allowed to wear a full-body unitard underneath the customary uniform, in accordance with her faith's requirements. Abdullah took the floor wearing a traditional black hijab (headscarf), matching top and shorts, with a tan custom-made unitard covering her arms and knees underneath. The rules previously stated that a competitor's elbows and knees would need to be visible so that officials could check that a lift was being properly executed, but after a plea from Abdullah to compete in her first championship, the IWF reconsidered its guidelines.