Iranian Women's Olympic Soccer team forced to forfeit match

[Barnabas]

http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/bl...s-soccer-team-forfeits-2012-qua?urn=oly-wp280

The Iranian women's soccer team was in tears after being forced to forfeit a 2012 London Olympics qualifying match this past weekend because it showed up to play in hajibs. FIFA banned the Islamic head scarf in 2007, saying that it could cause choking injuries -- the same reason it gave for recently banning snoods (neck warmers). FIFA also has strict rules against any religious statements in team uniforms.
Since Iran refused to comply with these rules and didn't use the specially designed caps that its 2010 Youth Olympics team wore, Friday's match was abandoned by officials and a 3-0 win was awarded to Jordan as a result. The Football Federation of Iran said it will complain to FIFA about the ruling, but FIFA says assurances were made beforehand so that this situation would've been avoided. From the AP:


"Despite initial assurances that the Iranian delegation understood this, the players came out wearing the hijab, and the head and neck totally covered, which was an infringement of the laws of the game," FIFA said in a statement. [...]
Jordan team officials also objected to the hijab rule before the game, but prepared to play by declining to select women who objected on religious grounds.
"The Iranian team and three Jordanian players were also banned from playing because they wore the traditional head cover," Rana Husseini, head of Jordan's women's football committee, told The Associated Press.
"The problem is that the head cover assigned and approved by FIFA for women players to wear does not suit them as it reveals part of the neck and this is not allowed and it is not acceptable," she said.


Iran also forfeited a second group match against Vietnam on Sunday, seriously damaging its chances of advancing to the London Olympics. It seems unlikely that its federation's complaints will help its case, though, since these rules are not new and compromises have been made in the past. It's just a shame these women were put in the middle of this debate between Iran's federation and FIFA and set up for disappointment.

opinions?

My only questions are:

Is the Hajib hood really a health risk?

Why was the female youth teams replacement Caps acceptable four the youth tea but not for the adult one?(This question is leveled at the Iranian team.)

 

[PeaceSeeker]

What the Iranian authorities are doing is so ridiculous that it boggles my mind.
Wake up and join the 21st century.

 

[Barnabas]

From what I gather this doesn't have anything to do with the authorities of Iran. It's the team choosing to wear the hajibs, their not being forced to.

 

[PeaceSeeker]

From what I gather this doesn't have anything to do with the authorities of Iran. It's the team choosing to wear the hajibs, their not being forced to.

I'm sure that given a choice they would love nothing more than to burn their hijabs and take part in the games. And also play without being handicapped before the match even starts.

But Iranian authorities are so strict that if any of the girls voices her REAL opinion they will probably get kicked out of the team instantly.

 

[Barnabas]

I'm sure that given a choice they would love nothing more than to burn their hijabs and take part in the games. And also play without being handicapped before the match even starts.

But Iranian authorities are so strict that if any of the girls voices her REAL opinion they will probably get kicked out of the team instantly.

I don't know about that, the youth team were aloud to wear a cap as a cover to participate, the adult team had the same option, and were under the same authorities.

 

[PeaceSeeker]

I don't know about that, the youth team were aloud to wear a cap as a cover to participate, the adult team had the same option, and were under the same authorities.

I've been to Iran .... most of the young girls (18-30) wear more make up than American girls. And what they wear as headscarfs covers like 20% their head.
I don't believe for a second that the girls football team would willingly forfeit the Olympics just to defend that monstrosity of an outfit.

 

[PeaceSeeker]

Here's the typical look you find in Tehran.
If they don't have to fully coverup in public, then why make them do it when playing a sport?!
They're retards, that's why

 

[Barnabas]

just to give you an Idea here s what their uniforms look like, also it's not the Olympics in it's entirety but instead their showing up to games with the Hajibs and refusing to remove them and in doing so forfeiting the games.

 

[Faye]

Isn't it their problem if they choke?

 

[just me]

Sounds to me like someone is trying to make a political and/or religious statement at the cost of the individual player(s) right(s) to play or participate in something they have practiced for. That is such a disaster to the players. They knew the rules and came prepared to buck the system at their own cost. Their loss at their own choosing, way I see it (if it was their own choice).

 

[Flavus Aquila]

I'm surprised that Iranian women are allowed to play soccer in the first place.

 

[MikeA]

Strange, how they dress like sperms.

 

[VH]

This is simply cultural indignance. Two cultures refusing to accept one another, bickering over the details.

 

[enfp can be shy]

"O'er the land of the free" the media repeatedly focuses the public's attention on the social injustices of a country, which must be eventually embraced as the next target of the neverending war for peace. I wonder who's really made to cover their face here - the Iranian women, or the US public.

 

[VH]

"O'er the land of the free" the media repeatedly focuses the public's attention on the social injustices of a country, which must be eventually embraced as the next target of the neverending war for peace. I wonder who's really made to cover their face here - the Iranian women, or the US public.

Or it's simply that the American media is interested in human drama regardless of taking sides, and a team full of crying women - no matter where they are from - invokes a compassionate reflex.

Way to make stereotyping assumptions and sweeping generalizations.

 

[88chaz88]

This is simply cultural indignance. Two cultures refusing to accept one another, bickering over the details.

Though FIFA is a world wide organisation (The world cup after Russia will be held in Qatar????) so it's a little more complicated than a cultural inignance.

Also I think FIFA are probably right about this, any form of scarf would be a choking hazard in sports. If someone died nobody would be saying it's their fault, FIFA would be sued to hell.

 

[VH]

Though FIFA is a world wide organisation (The world cup after Russia will be held in Qatar????) so it's a little more complicated than a cultural inignance.

The underlying current is West vs. Islam. Neither side wants to concede their beliefs or values, despite them coming into conflict more and more frequently. While this is technically a debate about safety issues, the refusal to comply escalates it into another skirmish in the ongoing cultural conflict which is based on the hostilities garnered on both sides from the history of violent conflict, especially in the recent decades, which is unfortunately causing people on both sides to become less and less tolerant of each others' expectations.

Also I think FIFA are probably right about this, any form of scarf would be a choking hazard in sports. If someone died nobody would be saying it's their fault, FIFA would be sued to hell.

Agreed. Head coverings are entirely different from neck bindings. Most importantly if it was the 'fault' of a player on another team, it could blow up into an international incident.

 

[enfp can be shy]

Or it's simply that the American media is interested in human drama regardless of taking sides, and a team full of crying women - no matter where they are from - invokes a compassionate reflex.

Way to make stereotyping assumptions and sweeping generalizations.

Yes, in this particular case, that's true.

 

[MikeA]

Agreed. Head coverings are entirely different from neck bindings. Most importantly if it was the 'fault' of a player on another team, it could blow up into an international incident.

Sadly, instead, their response is, as always: "They are Jews, and Jews are conspiring against us! Everyone hates us! They're biased! They're trying to oppress our religion! Our culture! We should set examples to further undermine our own culture in the eyes of others!"

 

[Arsal]

This uniform is perfectly OK. It's a shame they weren't allowed to play.