Egypt’s Olympic volleyball duo defiantly competed fully clothed at the Paris games before criticising the country’s hijab ban on French female athletes.
Following Egypt’s 2-0 defeat to Spain, the pair were seen embracing each other in their long-sleeved tops, leggings and headscarves, while the Spanish duo celebrated their victory in a tight red bikini and matching sun visor.
The bold move comes after France banned its female team members from wearing hijabs, with the country’s sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera saying the move was taken to help respect the principles of secularism.
But despite this, Abdelhady and Elghobashy took to the volleyball court wearing their religious headdresses and later condemned the ban.
Egypt’s Olympic volleyball duo competed fully dressed in hijab against their bikini-clad Spanish opponents.
Egyptian athletes Marwa Abdelhady and Doaa Elghobashy defiantly wore an all-black outfit along with their religious headscarf, a garment that has been banned for French athletes.
Liliana Fernández Steiner and Paula Soria Gutiérrez from Spain wore red bikinis during the game
The images have gone viral on social media due to the stark contrast in the outfits.
“I want to play with my hijab, she wants to play in a bikini. It’s all fine, if you want to be naked or wear hijab. Just respect all different cultures and religions,” Elghobashy said. Express.
“I’m not telling you to put a hijab on me and you’re not telling me to put on a bikini. No one can tell me how to dress.
“It’s a free country, everyone should be able to do what they want.”
Amnesty International and ten other groups wrote to the International Olympic Committee in June calling for the ban to be overturned, warning it led to “discrimination” against Muslim athletes.
“Women and girls who wear the hijab in France have been and continue to be prevented from playing numerous sports, including football, basketball, judo, boxing, volleyball and badminton, even at youth and amateur levels,” the letter states.
‘Hijab bans in sports have led to many Muslim athletes being discriminated against, rendered invisible, excluded and humiliated, causing trauma and social isolation; some have left or are considering leaving the country to seek opportunities to play elsewhere.
The human rights organisation then criticised the Olympic host country after the ban was not lifted.
“Banning French athletes from competing in hijabs at the Olympic and Paralympic Games makes a mockery of the claim that Paris 2024 is the first gender-neutral Olympic Games and exposes the racist gender discrimination that underpins access to sport in France,” said Anna Błus, Amnesty International’s researcher on women’s rights in Europe.
Abdelhady and Elghobashy hugged after losing to Spain
Steiner and Gutierrez showed off their toned abs after winning the volleyball match against Egypt
“I’m not telling you to put a hijab on me and you’re not telling me to put on a bikini. No one can tell me how to dress,” Elghobashy said.
The ban on wearing the hijab in football was introduced in 2006, in basketball in 2022, and in volleyball in 2023.
“The hijab is part of me,” Elghobashy said.
Elghobashy believes allowing the hijab, which will be permitted in the athletes’ village, offers “freedom for all” and hopes that attention will shift from what they wear to their performance.
“I love playing in a hijab, not in a bikini,” she said, calling the International Volleyball Federation’s (FIVB) rule change a sign of “respect.”
‘Another girl might not like it, but it’s fine with you. It’s freedom, I felt comfortable and good.
“The hijab is a part of me. It’s not like that for everyone.”
This comes after French Olympic sprinter Sounkamba Sylla took to social media days before the 2024 Games were set to begin, saying she would not be allowed to take part in the opening ceremony because of her hijab.
“You were selected for the Olympic Games, hosted by your country, but you cannot participate in the opening ceremony because you are wearing a headscarf,” Sylla wrote on her private Instagram, according to The Associated Press.
Until the 2012 Olympics, female volleyball players were required to wear bikinis (with bottoms no higher than 7 cm from the top to the bottom of the hip) or a one-piece swimsuit.
But the FIVB stepped in and revealed its aim to open up the sport to players and change the rules to accommodate more athletes.
The ban on wearing the hijab in French sports applies to all levels, including amateur and youth, and even beyond the Olympic Games, according to Amnesty International.
There is no national law or policy prohibiting the wearing of the hijab in sports, but each sports federation has its own regulations prohibiting the religious headscarf.
Football, basketball and volleyball are just some of the sports that have them banned.
The ban on wearing the hijab in football was introduced in 2006, in basketball in 2022, and in volleyball in 2023.
“We have documented over the years – about 20 years – that measures are constantly being introduced to limit the rights of Muslim women,” Blus said of France.
“There has definitely been an increase in these types of measures in different areas of life over the last 20 years,” he added.
