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Drishti Bodhraj Premprakashi

JWB Blogger

Four Saudi Arabian Women Are All Set To Make History In This Year’s Rio Olympics

  • JWB Post
  •  July 21, 2016

 

In recent news, Saudi Arabia has selected four women to compete in the Rio Olympics.

*Suppressed Gasps* Honestly, I am just as surprised as you are. A country that doesn’t allow women to drive is allowing them to compete in the Olympics. Don’t get me wrong; I’m very happy with the country’s decision, and I think it’s the start of women empowerment in KSA.

Sara Al-Attar, Lubna Al-Omair, Cariman Abu Al-Jadail and Wujud Fahmi will become the second group of women to represent Saudi Arabia in the Olympics, the first one being two women who competed in the 2012 Olympics.

The historic decision, however, has its cons. Due to the country’s gender politics, the official announcement of the Olympic team’s end only announced the names of seven men who will compete. The announcement for the women’s team was made separately given the fact that women’s athletics is segregated from the men’s in the country, said Saudi Olympic Chief Committee Executive, Hosam Alqurashi.

A spokesman also mentioned that the four women would be given wildcard entries so that they can compete without going through a formal qualification process.

Though women have been allowed to compete, they’ve been asked to cover their heads in hijab and wear clothes that completely cover their skin.

It is also known that women’s gyms are scarce in the kingdom, but they have recently announced a package of reforms that also include licensing of women’s sports halls. They plan to achieve this goal by 2020.

So far, so good.

Kudos to you, KSA!

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